Do Vegetarians Get Enough Protein?
Two kinds of proteins exist in the foods people eat: complete and incomplete. Complete proteins have all of the necessary amino acids in the correct ratios for the human body to convert into proteins. Complete protein exists in poultry, seafood, milk, cheese, and eggs. Soy protein is one of the rare plant-based complete proteins. On the other hand, incomplete proteins do not have all of the amino acids in the correct ratios for the production of proteins. Most plants do not contain all of the essential complete proteins. Although, combining certain grains and legumes can actually provide someone with all the essential amino acids. Grains are high in methionine, and legumes and beans are high in lysine and tryptophan, meaning these combined can provide adequate protein. Certain cultures incorporate this idea, such as how in Mexico corn and beans are eaten, in U.S. South rice and black-eyed peas are eaten, and in India rice and lentils are eaten. You need all eight amino acids to have a healthy amount of protein in your body. Extra amino acids not needed in your body are excreted as urea in urine. Some scientists say not to consume soy products by infants and pregnant woman, since it contains genistein, which can distress the immune system. Acrylamide is the result of the amino acid asparagine, and glucose, mix when baking/frying temperature surpasses 248 degrees F. Animal studies have revealed that acrylamide can act as a cancer causing carcinogen, although it has not been proven to cause breast, bowel, kidney, or bladder cancer, meaning the levels of acrylamide in food are most likely very low. Acrylamide exists in starchy foods such as potato chips, French fries, cookies, biscuits, processed cereals, and some types of bread.
No difficult terms.
I picked this article mainly because I am a vegetarian, and I always hear from my mom something along the lines of “I really think you are not getting enough protein, trust me I know these things. You are young and think you know everything, but really you don’t understand that…” Now I think I should show her this article and see what she says. Although, I still believe that even though I may be able to get enough protein, I am not sure whether an athlete can. Maybe if they also took vitamins then they could, but I highly doubt they would favor the idea of not eating meat (not to induce any stereotypes of athletes).
The funniest part about the misconception of vegetarianisms, is that so many people say that if you do not eat meat, then you will not get enough protein, and these people do not even know what protein is! It has just been a part of culture for people to think that meat protein is a necessity, but they do not know about the real story behind the food pyramid (how lobbying, dairy and meat farmers were involved). If more people would read articles such as this, then maybe they would be more open to vegetarianisms. Also, a benefit to not eating meat that might make people more open to vegetarianisms is that it is healthier for your body, since meat contains fats that the body does not always need. Another benefit, is being a vegetarian is better for the environment.
Colin Baird. What’s A Complete Protein? Chemistry in Your Life: Second Edition. W.H. Freeman and Company. New York. 2006.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Pucker Up!
Have you ever wondered how lipstick is made? What gives it its consistency? It's shape and strength? Well, lipsticks are made of a mixture of several substances: natural waxes, oils, emulsifiers, and synthetic dyes. The synthetic dye obviously gives lipstick its color and can vary in shade, but are most commonly red or orange-hued.
Lipstick gains its moisturizing properties from the oils and emulsifiers that are found in it. A common emulsifier that is found in lipstick is lanolin. An emulsifier is a moisturizing compound of oils and fats.
Another major moisturizing component of lipstick is the oils that are used. The most commonly used oil in lipstick is Castor oil. This same oil is often used in pharmaceuticals and other cosmetic products as a lubrticant. This ingredient gives lipstick its consistency. As an oil, it allows the makeup to remain as a solid, but to also flow easily when applied to the lips.
The natural waxes grant lipstick is hardness, strength, and shape. These natural waxes are mixtures of long-chain esters. A common natural wax used in lipstick is beeswax. Beeswax contains esters that are formed when alcohols (with 24 to 36 carbon atoms) react with carboxylic acids (with 36 carbon atoms).
This seemingly simple object is a great example of how pervasive chemistry is in our lives. The complex mixture of lipstick demonstrates fundamental chemical aspects while also demonstrating how such chemicals are so versatile.
Baird, Colin. "6.22 Esters form the waxes that are used in lipstick." Chemistry in Your Life. 2nd ed. Boston: W. H. Freeman & Company, 2006. 246-47.
Lipstick gains its moisturizing properties from the oils and emulsifiers that are found in it. A common emulsifier that is found in lipstick is lanolin. An emulsifier is a moisturizing compound of oils and fats.
Another major moisturizing component of lipstick is the oils that are used. The most commonly used oil in lipstick is Castor oil. This same oil is often used in pharmaceuticals and other cosmetic products as a lubrticant. This ingredient gives lipstick its consistency. As an oil, it allows the makeup to remain as a solid, but to also flow easily when applied to the lips.
The natural waxes grant lipstick is hardness, strength, and shape. These natural waxes are mixtures of long-chain esters. A common natural wax used in lipstick is beeswax. Beeswax contains esters that are formed when alcohols (with 24 to 36 carbon atoms) react with carboxylic acids (with 36 carbon atoms).
This seemingly simple object is a great example of how pervasive chemistry is in our lives. The complex mixture of lipstick demonstrates fundamental chemical aspects while also demonstrating how such chemicals are so versatile.
Baird, Colin. "6.22 Esters form the waxes that are used in lipstick." Chemistry in Your Life. 2nd ed. Boston: W. H. Freeman & Company, 2006. 246-47.
Why Do People Smell Fishy?
Many Amines Have Odors That Disgust Us
Summary
Amines have “fishy” odor which is repulsive to many people. Trimethylamine Is what is generated in rotting fish, leaving that horrible smell behind. The reason we detect these scents is because the amines are water soluble and volatile liquids that make their way to the sensors in our nose. The nitrogen in animal flesh after decomposition turns into amines. Those amines that are released into the air are the rotten odors we smell. Stronger bad smelling odors come from diamines, the two amino groups purescine and cadaverine. Both of these amino groups are found in rotting meat and fish. These amines also contribute to the odor of urine, bad breath, and semen.
Terms
Amines- organic molecules that correspond to ammonia, in which one, two or all three of the hydrogen atoms have been replaced by R groups consisting of chains or rings of carbon atoms (with their associated hydrogen atoms).
Diamines- amines that contain two amino groups.
Volatile- evaporating rapidly; passing off readily in the form of vapor.
Reaction
I wanted to do a blog on this supplemental reading because I was curious what it was that made decomposing animals smell bad. Additionally, I found this particularly of interest because part of the reason I don’t like seafood is for its fishy scent. I also found it interesting that there is a human genetic disease that makes people smell like fish because of defects of enzymes that don’t convert to a odorless compound. Learning that fish only smell fishy when they start the decomposition process makes me more skeptical about eating fish because I don’t like the idea of eating a fish that smells knowing it’s decomposing.
Summary
Amines have “fishy” odor which is repulsive to many people. Trimethylamine Is what is generated in rotting fish, leaving that horrible smell behind. The reason we detect these scents is because the amines are water soluble and volatile liquids that make their way to the sensors in our nose. The nitrogen in animal flesh after decomposition turns into amines. Those amines that are released into the air are the rotten odors we smell. Stronger bad smelling odors come from diamines, the two amino groups purescine and cadaverine. Both of these amino groups are found in rotting meat and fish. These amines also contribute to the odor of urine, bad breath, and semen.
Terms
Amines- organic molecules that correspond to ammonia, in which one, two or all three of the hydrogen atoms have been replaced by R groups consisting of chains or rings of carbon atoms (with their associated hydrogen atoms).
Diamines- amines that contain two amino groups.
Volatile- evaporating rapidly; passing off readily in the form of vapor.
Reaction
I wanted to do a blog on this supplemental reading because I was curious what it was that made decomposing animals smell bad. Additionally, I found this particularly of interest because part of the reason I don’t like seafood is for its fishy scent. I also found it interesting that there is a human genetic disease that makes people smell like fish because of defects of enzymes that don’t convert to a odorless compound. Learning that fish only smell fishy when they start the decomposition process makes me more skeptical about eating fish because I don’t like the idea of eating a fish that smells knowing it’s decomposing.
Nicotine and Caffeine: Structurally too close for comfort?
Although nicotine and caffeine may at first glance seem unrelated they are in fact very similar. Structurally they both contain a pyridine ring and a pyrrolidine ring joined by a single bond. Both caffeine and nicotine are stimulants, meaning they can both induce heightened alertness and mental process temporarily. Increased heart rate, blood pressure, and production of adrenaline are also side effects. Both amines are found in plants and have been used throughout history as “stay-awake” drugs.
A pyridine ring is a ring of five carbon atoms and a nitrogen atom that is structurally similar to a benzene ring. A pyrrolidine ring is a ring composed of four carbon atoms and a nitrogen atom with a hydrogen atom attached.
These two legal stimulants are widely used today because of their long history of cultural acceptance. Today many people refer to caffeine as the only drug that kids can legally abuse. It is very interesting to think that the only thing that separates caffeine from nicotine is two carbon atoms and two hydrogen atoms.
Source:
Baird, Colin. Chemistry in Your Life. Second Edition. “Nitrogen atoms are found in nicotine and caffeine”. Page 297-300. W.H. Freeman and Company. New York. 2006.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
The history of alcohol in the body
“The history of a can of beer in the body”
Alcohol is metabolized and processed in a series of six steps: alcohol in the stomach is absorbed into the bloodstream, the alcohol in the small intestine is then absorbed into the blood before other nutrients in the body, the liver enzymes break the alcohol down into water and carbon dioxide, a small amount of unmetabolized alcohol is excreted through urine and sweat, the unmetabolized alcohol in the blood moves into the lungs and is inhaled, and lastly, the alcohol in the blood is transported to the brain and begins to affect the central nervous system. There are some factors that influence how fast the alcohol is delivered to the brain; for instance, eating a high-fat meal while drinking a beer, for instance, slows down the absorption of the alcohol into the brain, while drinking a carbonated drink has the opposite effect. Effects of alcohol consumption begin to fade about thirty minutes after the first drink is consumed, while it is about a fourth of its original level after an hour. This can change, however, is multiple drinks are consumed, which influences the “race” between the ethanol absorption into the blood and how fast the liver breaks it down. When alcohol concentration in the blood stream is low, it interferes with the brain’s inhibitory brain centers, which results usually in uncontrolled emotional displays, mood changes, and the loss of social constraint. At higher concentrations, motor coordination is partially lost, speech becomes slurred, and at even higher levels the ethanol effect becomes dominant, so that people can pass out, undergo a coma, or die.
Unfamiliar terms:
Ethanol: a straight chain alcohol, and a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid
Reaction:
This process I think is really important to know, as well as the effects of speeding it up or ignoring its effects. To me, because alcohol is in such common use throughout the world, and especially on college campuses, it is incredibly important to know about how your body reacts to alcohol, as well as what can be done to speed up or slow down its effects, as well as the less dramatic effects it has on your body, such as dehydration.
References:
Baird, Colin. Chemistry in Your Life. New York: W.H. Freedman and CO, 2006.
“Ethanol” Wikipedia. Feb 17 2009. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethanol
Alcohol is metabolized and processed in a series of six steps: alcohol in the stomach is absorbed into the bloodstream, the alcohol in the small intestine is then absorbed into the blood before other nutrients in the body, the liver enzymes break the alcohol down into water and carbon dioxide, a small amount of unmetabolized alcohol is excreted through urine and sweat, the unmetabolized alcohol in the blood moves into the lungs and is inhaled, and lastly, the alcohol in the blood is transported to the brain and begins to affect the central nervous system. There are some factors that influence how fast the alcohol is delivered to the brain; for instance, eating a high-fat meal while drinking a beer, for instance, slows down the absorption of the alcohol into the brain, while drinking a carbonated drink has the opposite effect. Effects of alcohol consumption begin to fade about thirty minutes after the first drink is consumed, while it is about a fourth of its original level after an hour. This can change, however, is multiple drinks are consumed, which influences the “race” between the ethanol absorption into the blood and how fast the liver breaks it down. When alcohol concentration in the blood stream is low, it interferes with the brain’s inhibitory brain centers, which results usually in uncontrolled emotional displays, mood changes, and the loss of social constraint. At higher concentrations, motor coordination is partially lost, speech becomes slurred, and at even higher levels the ethanol effect becomes dominant, so that people can pass out, undergo a coma, or die.
Unfamiliar terms:
Ethanol: a straight chain alcohol, and a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid
Reaction:
This process I think is really important to know, as well as the effects of speeding it up or ignoring its effects. To me, because alcohol is in such common use throughout the world, and especially on college campuses, it is incredibly important to know about how your body reacts to alcohol, as well as what can be done to speed up or slow down its effects, as well as the less dramatic effects it has on your body, such as dehydration.
References:
Baird, Colin. Chemistry in Your Life. New York: W.H. Freedman and CO, 2006.
“Ethanol” Wikipedia. Feb 17 2009. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethanol
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