Carbohydrates
Judy A. Driskell in Nutrition and Exercise Concerns of Middle Age, 2009
Carbohydrates are the main source of energy during prolonged moderate-to highintensity endurance exercise and repetitive, high-intensity activities that utilize the anaerobic energy systems. Sugars and starches consumed in the diet are stored within the body mostly in the form of glycogen, which can be rapidly mobilized as a source of energy during exercise. Carbohydrate stores in the body are limited, and are not able to indefinitely sustain moderate-to high-intensity exercise. Considerable research over the last 30 years has investigated dietary carbohydrate and methods of manipulating its intake at several key time points before, during, and after exercise. This chapter will present information regarding the metabolism of carbohydrate during exercise, as well as methods for manipulating carbohydrate consumption before, during, and after training or competition with the aim of enhancing performance and recovery.
Carbohydrates Are Our Most Basic Fuel Source
Robert E.C. Wildman in The Nutritionist, 2009
The term carbohydrate was coined long ago as scientists observed a consistent pattern in the chemical formula of most carbohydrates. Not only were they composed of only carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen but also the ratio of carbon to the chemical formula of water (H2O) is typically 1 to 1 (C:H2O). Carbohydrate means “carbon with water.” For example, carbohydrates glucose and galactose have the following chemical formula: C6H12O6 or (CH2O)6.
Fats and Cholesterol Are Not All Bad
Robert Wildman in The Nutritionist, 2002
Over the past couple of decades fat and cholesterol have taken a beating in the press, being labeled as the nutritional bad boys. We are told to avoid them as much as possible. Yet one cannot help but wonder whether fats and cholesterol have been simply misunderstood. Without question, certain types of fats in excess can have a negative impact upon certain risk factors for heart disease; however, other types of fat are not really a problem, while others still contain fatty acids essential to our health. Interestingly, with the rebirth of the low carbohydrate diet, fat has become a sought-out component of some people’s diets in a quest for weight loss. Furthermore, the storage of excessive energy in the body as fat versus carbohydrate or protein certainly holds tremendous merit, which is often overlooked.
Application of carbohydrate array technology to antigen discovery and vaccine development
Published in Expert Review of Vaccines, 2007
Oyindasola Oyelaran, Jeffrey C Gildersleeve
Carbohydrate arrays are a new technology developed for high-throughput evaluation of interactions between carbohydrates and proteins, cells or viruses. Carbohydrate arrays contain many different carbohydrate structures on a solid support. The format allows one to probe hundreds or thousands of potential receptor–ligand interactions while using only tiny amounts of material. Recently, carbohydrate arrays have been applied to vaccine development in several ways. First, carbohydrate arrays have been utilized for the discovery and characterization of carbohydrate antigens. Second, they have been used to evaluate immune responses to vaccine candidates. Third, carbohydrate arrays have been used to identify and characterize reagents necessary for vaccine development. Although still at an early stage, carbohydrate array technology has tremendous potential for accelerating vaccine development.
The Effects of Dietary Protein Quality and Carbohydrate Quantity on the Activity of Intestinal Disaccharidase in Wistar Rats
Published in Scandinavian Journal of Gastroenterology, 1980
Intestinal disaccharidase activities were determined in groups of rats fed diets containing (a) 64% carbohydrate/19% protein, (b) 19% carbohydrate/64% protein, and (c) carbohydrate diets containing 19% proteins of different qualities. The intestinal disaccharidase activity was related not only to the quantity of the carbohydrate substrate but also to the quality of the protein in the diet. It is suggested that regular ingestion of a high-carbohydrate poor-quality protein diet will result in both protein and carbohydrate malnutrition.
Carbohydrates and exercise
Published in Journal of Sports Sciences, 1991
Muscle glycogen and blood glucose are important substrates for contracting skeletal muscle during exercise and fatigue often coincides with depletion of these carbohydrate reserves. Carbohydrate utilization during exercise is influenced by several factors including exercise intensity and duration, training status, diet, environment and gender. In view of the importance of carbohydrates for exercise performance, active individuals should ensure their diet contains sufficient carbohydrate. For athletes engaged in heavy training the daily carbohydrate requirement may be as high as 9–10 g carbohydrate per kg body mass in order to guarantee adequate carbohydrate availability prior to and during exercise and to allow full recovery of carbohydrate reserves following exercise.