Hello and welcome to another mini Ask a Nutritionist episode of Dishing Up Nutrition.

I'm Teresa Wagner, a registered and licensed dietitian.

If you follow the world of health and nutrition, you might have heard about amino acids,

especially in the fitness world.

Supplementing with amino acids and the peptides they form is common.

And you may be wondering how to get the ideal ratio from food and supplements and for your needs and if you should be

supplementing at all. So today we are diving into amino acids to get your questions answered.

First let's talk about why amino acids are in the spotlight and why you'd even care. Amino acids have had the attention

of those in the fitness world for many years, but they don't just build muscles for weightlifters.

They support your immune system, help repair tissues, produce hormones, and even play a role in mood and sleep.

For athletes, amino acids are crucial for recovery.

For older adults, meaning adults over 30, but especially for our 60 plus crowd,

amino acids are key in preventing muscle loss. And for everyone,

they are vital for keeping our metabolism humming along. Let's get into what these really are

and how they work in the body. You may have heard amino acids being called the building blocks of protein. And that's true.

Think of proteins in your body like Lego structures, those castles, the airplane, the firehouse.

Every tissue in your body contains proteins, those protein structures. It makes up the structure of everything from your

bones, joints, muscles, skin, hair, nails, and all of your organs. Amino acids, on the other hand,

are like the individual Lego bricks of those structures. When we eat proteins, say from meat, eggs, dairy products, even plant-based foods,

like soy and beans, our body breaks down that protein structure into amino acids or those individual

Lego bricks. Then it rebuilds them into the proteins we need, like that completed Lego structure.

Another way you can think about this is like sentence structure.

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