Respuesta :
with carb-rich food, the body doesn't need to spend extra energy converting other nutrients, like those found in meat, into glucose to feed the brain.
Answer:
Carbohydrates are called "brain foods" because it is the main type of energy provider used by the brain.
General Concepts:
Biology
Cells
- Amino acids
Energy
- Krebs Cycle
Health
- Macronutrients
Explanation:
Carbohydrates are the most efficient energy providers. Using a bit of biology, we can see why.
The intake of carbohydrates into the body is the start of producing energy, known as cellular respiration. The carbohydrate breaks down in glycolysis, which then breaks down even more in the Krebs Cycle, and then lastly producing energy in the Electron Transport Chain. This process produces around 32 - 38 Adenine Triphosphate (ATP), which is the energy carrying "battery" that fuels our cells.
That process is for 1 cell. We have millions of cells in our body. Therefore, carbohydrates can produce a lot of ATP, which in turn is able to power our cells and our bodily processes.
Carbohydrates are also less complex than other macronutrients, making them easier to break up in our bodies and be able to be utilized. We can compare carbohydrates to the other nutrients: fats and proteins.
- Fats - when you intake fats, your body breaks it down into fatty acids, which is indeed used for energy, but for long-term energy. Compared to carbohydrates, carbs are used to "short-term" energy. The fatty acids are also used in your hormones and in your cell lining/walls.
- Proteins - these are the most energy-providing foods, but there are exceptions. When you intake proteins, your body breaks it down into amino acids, which are used for your body to build muscles and used in other necessary functions of life. You can also recall from biology that your DNA codes to create a long strain of amino acids to tell what type of protein a specific cell makes. Compared to carbohydrates, proteins take a while to break down, therefore not an ideal "first-choice" energy for your cells.
Carbohydrates are the easiest to break down and are able to produce a substantial amount of energy for your cells to utilize.
Using this, we can see why the brain uses carbohydrates as its first energy source. If carbs are not present, it will call on the other energy sources; first fats, then lastly proteins. Since carbohydrates are abundant and easy to utilize, carbs are called "brain foods."
Hope this helped!
