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You’ve likely heard of amino acids, but do you know what they are and what they do?
If not, you’ve come to the right place.
There are 20 different amino acids in your body that are important for maintaining your body’s proper function.
While your body can naturally produce some amino acids, it needs to get others from dietary sources.
Amino acids that your body can’t produce are known as essential amino acids.
Essential amino acids are necessary for many of your body’s processes, but supplementing them can also give you other potential health benefits.
I’m Dr. Kimberly Dawdy, ND, and at my Ottawa naturopathic clinic I can help you understand what your body needs to optimize your health.
In this article, we’re going to be taking a closer look at these essential amino acids.
First, What Are Amino Acids?
Amino acids are organic compounds that build proteins.
Amino acids are needed to build proteins, neurotransmitters, and hormones.
Proteins are long chains made up of various amino acids arranged in different sequences.
This is why amino acids are often referred to as the building blocks of proteins.
Different types of proteins, which are made up of different types of amino acids, are necessary for many of your body’s vital processes.
There are 20 different amino acids that your body needs in order to grow and function properly.
Amino acids can be categorized as:
- Nonessential
- Conditionally essential
- Essential
However, these names can be misleading.
Every amino acid is “essential”, in that they’re important for optimal health.
What the word “essential” means in this case is that your body can’t produce them on your own.
On the other hand, nonessential amino acids are naturally produced by your body.
Conditionally essential amino acids are nonessential amino acids that become essential in certain circumstances, such as:
- Illness
- Traumatic injury
- Infancy
- Pregnancy
In particular circumstances such as these, your body may not be able to produce enough nonessential amino acids in order to maintain its proper function.
What Is An Essential Amino Acid?
There are 9 amino acids that are classified as essential.
Your body can’t naturally produce essential amino acids, so you have to get them from dietary sources.
Your body makes protein out of amino acids, but you also get those amino acids from protein in your diet.
Each essential amino acid plays numerous important functions in your body.
Supplementing essential amino acids in your diet may also provide you with a host of health benefits.
Let’s take a closer look at what each of the 9 essential amino acids are, what their function is, and what potential health benefits they may offer.
Phenylalanine
Phenylalanine is an amino acid that plays a key role in building neurotransmitters, such as:
- Dopamine
- Epinephrine
- Tyrosine
- Norepinephrine
Dysfunction in these neurotransmitters can lead to health issues, such as depression.
Because phenylalanine is responsible for creating these compounds, taking it may help combat against the effects of some mood disorders.
Additionally, phenylalanine is involved in making the structure and maintaining the function of proteins and enzymes.
It also plays a role in producing other amino acids.
Other benefits of phenylalanine may include:
- Relieving pain
- Alleviating alcohol withdrawal symptoms
- Supporting Parkinson’s disease treatment
Valine
Valine is one of three branched chain amino acids, or BCAAs for short.
BCAAs are referred to as such due to their chemical structure.
They have a chain that branches off from one side of its organic structure.
Valine plays a role in stimulating muscle growth and regeneration.
It’s also involved in energy production.
Getting more valine, alongside the other two BCAA’s, may help:
- Improve athletic performance
- Stimulate muscle recovery post physical activity
- Alleviate fatigue
- Decrease muscle soreness
Histidine
Histidine is used by your body to create histamine.
Histamine is a neurotransmitter that’s crucial for:
- Digestive health
- Sexual function
- Regulating your sleep cycles
- Maintaining a healthy immune response
Another critical function of histidine is to maintain your body’s myelin sheath.
The myelin sheath is a barrier that surrounds and protects your nerve cells.
Other potential health benefits of histidine may include:
- Growing and repairing damaged tissues
- Producing blood cells
- Supporting the treatment of some skin conditions
Threonine
Threonine is one of the main parts of proteins such as elastin and collagen.
Both of these proteins are important components of your connective tissues and your skin.
Threonine also plays a part in your body’s immune function and fat metabolism.
Some health benefits of threonine may include:
- Supporting your digestive health
- Supporting muscle and bone strength
- Helping prevent fatty liver
- Supporting wound healing
- Potentially improving muscle contractions
- Potentially alleviating symptoms of anxiety and depression
Tryptophan
Tryptophan is used by your body to create serotonin.
Serotonin is a neurotransmitter, as well as a hormone, that is used by your never cells to communicate with each other.
Serotonin helps to regulate your:
- Sleep and wake cycles
- Mood
- Appetite
- Bowel movements
- Healing and blood clotting
- Sex drive
As a result of tryptophan’s role in producing serotonin, getting more of it may help reduce symptoms associated with depression and anxiety, and boost your overall mood.
It can also help promote and support healthier and better quality sleep.
Good quality sleep helps to regulate your mood as well as promote cognitive function.
Lysine
Lysine plays numerous important roles in your body.
It’s involved in:
- Protein synthesis
- Calcium absorption
- Hormone production
- Enzyme production
Additionally, lysine is also used in energy production, maintaining immune function, and producing collagen and elastin.
Getting more lysine may also provide you with a number of health benefits.
Some potential health benefits of lysine may include:
- Reducing anxiety related symptoms
- Promoting wound healing
- Improving immune response
- Regulating blood pressure
- Reducing blood sugar response in diabetes
- Promoting eye health
Methionine
Methionine is a crucial part of your metabolism and detoxification process.
Methionine is used by your body to create other important molecules, such as cysteine, which is another amino acid that’s produced by your body.
Cystine is used to create glutathione, which is a powerful antioxidant that helps defend your body from free radicals.
It’s also important in helping your body metabolize nutrients and produce proteins.
Additionally, methionine is needed for tissue growth, as well as for absorbing selenium and zinc, two important nutrients.
Methionine can help support the proper function of your cells, protect your tissues, support energy production, and more.
Isoleucine
Like valine, isoleucine is one of the three BCAAs.
It’s mainly found in muscle tissue and plays an important role in muscle metabolism.
Isoleucine is also involved in:
- Immune function
- Energy regulation
- Hemoglobin production
Getting more of the three BCAAs, valine, isoleucine, and leucine, may help improve exercise performance and help stimulate muscle recovery after physical activity.
Additionally, it may help to alleviate fatigue and reduce muscle soreness and damage after resistance training.
Taking BCAAs may also reduce your perceived exertion during high intensity exercise.
This means that you don’t feel as though you’re exerting a lot of energy during physical activities.
Some studies have also indicated that taking BCAAs may be effective at increasing your muscle mass.
Leucine
Leucine is the last of the three BCAAs, alongside valine and isoleucine.
Leucine is necessary for protein synthesis, as well as for repairing muscles.
Other functions of leucine include:
- Stimulating wound healing
- Regulating blood sugar levels
- Producing growth hormones
As a BCAA, leucine can help improve exercise performance, alleviate fatigue, and help with your muscle recovery.
Out of the three BCAAs, leucine is believed to contribute the most towards your body’s ability to build muscle proteins.
How To Get Enough Essential Amino Acids In Your Diet
As we’ve already mentioned, your body can’t produce essential amino acids on its own.
So, it’s important that you get them through dietary sources.
The good news is that there are lots of foods that are rich in essential amino acids.
This makes it easy for you to get enough essential amino acids to help maintain your body’s health and function.
There are a number of foods that have all nine essential amino acids.
These are known as complete proteins.
Foods that are classified as complete proteins include:
- Meat
- Poultry
- Seafood
- Dairy products
- Eggs
Plant based complete proteins include:
- Pea protein
- Soy
There are also plant based proteins that are considered incomplete proteins, meaning that they contain some, but not all, of the nine essential amino acids.
Plant based incomplete proteins can include:
- Beans
- Seeds
- Nuts
- Certain grains
Mixing these different proteins can help you get all the amino acids you need.
Book Your Appointment With Dawdy Naturopathic Today
If you’re looking for ways to optimize your diet and lifestyle, I’m Dr. Kimberly Dawdy, naturopathic doctor in Ottawa, and I’m here to help.
Book your appointment with me, Dr. Kimberly Dawdy, ND, today.
Yours in Health,
Dr. Kimberly Dawdy, ND
Dawdy Naturopathic Clinic
6899 Sunset Blvd,
Greely, ON K4P 1C5
-https://g.page/dawdynaturopathicclinic
Dawdy Naturopathic Clinic offers a variety of naturopathic health solutions for individuals and families in Ottawa and the surrounding area.
