Educational Info.
  

O U R   P R O D U C T S

Problems with our shopping cart? 

Nutritional Influences on
Muscular Development and Fat Metabolism
by J.E. Grogan for Show Feeds, Inc.™

Page 2 of 8
( View:  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8 )

Fat Functions:
Fats in the body serve five primary functions -

1. Provide the largest store of potential energy.

2. Serve as a cushion for the protection of vital organs.

3. Provide insulation from the thermal stress of cold environments.

4. Allow for the absorption of the fat soluble vitamins A, D, E, K and many other phytonutrients, such as beta carotene.

5. Act as appetite depressors.

Fats In Blood:
Fats are transported in the blood as chylomicrons, lipoproteins and free fatty acids. Chylomicrons are small fat droplets present in the blood during fat absorption. They contain triglycerides (fatty acids and glycerol) and small amounts of cholesterol and phospholipids (lecithins).

After absorbing fats into the cells, most blood fat consists of lipoproteins (a combination of triglycerides, cholesterol and phospholipids) combined with protein.

Fatty acids enter the blood from fat cells or other cells and combine with albumin to form free fatty acids, they are then transported to the cells of the tissues requiring them. Fats are stored in the body exclusively as triglycerides.

Fat Anabolism (Fat Build Up):

1. Triglycerides are composed of fatty acids and glycerol. They can be made from excess sugar or protein and are stored mainly in fat cells. Potentially a huge amount of body fat can be stored in this way. The formation of triglycerides is under dietary and hormonal control.

2. Excess carbohydrates and or unstabilized high glycemic (high insulin response) carbohydrates can be readily converted to triglycerides and stored as body fat. Unfortunately fat cells are economical and very efficient in energy storage. They contain 2.25 times the energy level of glucose. It is impossible to lose body weight as purely fat shrinkage without some loss of lean body mass. This is why adding supplementation to target fat energy utilization and to maintain muscle mass is essential.

   Fattening is the storing of surplus feed energy as fat both within and around body tissues. Fattening is desirable to give meat some of its palatability characteristics and to provide energy reserves for postpartum reproductive performance. A simple explanation of stored body fat utilization is: if energy out put exceeds energy intake the mobilization and burning of fat reserves occurs to supply energy. Often, however, muscle and organ mass can also be used as energy sources. Gain from growth is usually less costly than gain from fattening. Fattening is the result of excess energy for maintenance and growth. Usually fattening animals are fed full high-energy rations during the last phase of the growth-finishing feeding program.

   Fat mobilization -- the release of fats from storage fat (adipose tissue) cells, followed by their catabolism (breakdown), can also occur when blood contains less glucose than normal or when it contains less insulin than normal. This can lead to ketosis if it occurs excessively.

Fat Catabolism (Fat Break Down):

1. Hydrolysis (splitting) of fats (mostly in liver cells) into fatty acids and glycerol.

2. Glycerol is converted to glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate, which enters the glycolytic pathway and eventually the Krebs' cycle to produce ATP.

3. Fatty acids are converted by beta-oxidation to acetyl-coa; when fat catabolism is accelerated, acetyl-coa condenses to form ketone bodies (ketogenesis); this occurs mainly in the liver; the largest proportion of ketones enters blood from liver cells to be transported to the tissues for oxidation to carbon dioxide and water via Krebs' cycle.

4. The rate of fat breakdown is inversely related to the rate of carbohydrate catabolism. i.e. more fat is broken down when less carbohydrates are available for energy.

5. The stabilizing of carbohydrate metabolism can increase the fat catabolism rate - excessive carbohydrates or high insulin response (high glycemic) carbohydrates can increase the amount of fat stored.

   Fat cells once formed are never really lost, they only shrink when called upon for energy. Like wise muscle cells number only as many genetically. An expansion in muscle mass represents cellular size expansion not more cell numbers. Muscular hypertrophy (increase in muscle size) is dependent on stored glycogen (muscle sugar) and positive nitrogen balance or nitrogen retention. Many nutrients can be of help. When combined with a low-calorie diet and exercise, these nutrients may enhance fat loss and gains in lean mass (muscle). This allows animals to shed more fat than dieting alone can achieve. Moreover, the nutrients that speed fat-burning can also help save muscle from being lost. The theory is simple, dieting or energy restriction causes the body to shed a combination of fat and some muscle tissue. If the fat-burning process is enhanced by the use of key nutrient supplementation and dietary manipulation the body becomes less likely to tap muscle for fuel because it's being adequately fueled by stored body fat.