Metabolism meaning

Your metabolism constantly provides your body with energy for essential body functions like breathing and digestion. Your body needs a minimum number of calories (the basal metabolic rate or BMR) to sustain these functions. Factors like age, sex, muscle mass and physical activity affect metabolism or BMR. Overview What is metabolism? Metabolism refers to the chemical (metabolic) processes that take place as your body converts foods and drinks into energy. It’s a complex process that combines calories and oxygen to create and release energy. This energy fuels body functions. What does your metabolism do? Your metabolism never stops, even when your body is at rest. It constantly provides energy for basic body functions, such as: • Breathing. • Circulating blood. • Digesting food. • Growing and repairing cells. • Managing hormone levels. • Regulating body temperature. What is the basal metabolic rate (BMR)? Your basal metabolic rate (BMR) refers to the minimum number of How does the body use the rest of its energy? Your body uses about one-tenth of its energy to process food into fuel. The remaining energy fuels your physical movement. How does metabolism affect weight? Many people blame metabolic problems for weight struggles. But your metabolism naturally regulates itself to meet your body’s needs. It’s rarely the cause of weight gain or loss. In general, anyone who burns more calories than they take in will What’s the difference between a fast metabolism and slow metabolis...

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A person’s metabolism is the rate at which their body burns calories for energy. The speed of metabolism depends age, activity levels, genetics and other factors. Regular meals, sleep, and exercise may all help boost metabolism. Calories provide the energy the body needs, not only to move but also to breathe, digest food, circulate blood, grow cells, repair wounds, and even to think. The rate at which the body burns calories to produce this energy is called the metabolic rate. The rate can vary between individuals. While a person has no control over the genetic aspects of their metabolism, research shows that some strategies may help speed up the rate at which the body processes It is worth noting that, while speeding up the metabolism may help people burn calories and lose weight, it needs to be part of an overall strategy that includes a healthy and varied diet and regular exercise. In this article, learn about 10 approaches that may help increase metabolism. Share on Pinterest Gary Yeowell/Getty Images The body relies on balance and regularity. In 2019, some They suggested that the following may provide health benefits: • eat • consume most energy-providing foods early in the day • eat two to three meals per day at regular times • have periods of fasting The authors also hypothesized that meal timing may play a role in resting energy expenditure. However, the results were not conclusive, and more reseach is needed. Learn about Some people skip meals as a way to lose wei...

The liver is the principal site of drug metabolism (for review, see [ General references The liver is the principal site of drug metabolism (for review, see [ 1]). Although metabolism typically inactivates drugs, some drug metabolites are pharmacologically active—sometimes even... read more ]). Although metabolism typically inactivates drugs, some drug metabolites are pharmacologically active—sometimes even more so than the parent compound. An inactive or weakly active substance that has an active metabolite is called a prodrug, especially if designed to deliver the active moiety more effectively. Drugs can be metabolized by oxidation, reduction, hydrolysis, hydration, conjugation, condensation, or isomerization; whatever the process, the goal is to make the drug easier to excrete. The enzymes involved in metabolism are present in many tissues but generally are more concentrated in the liver. Drug metabolism rates vary among patients. Some patients metabolize a drug so rapidly that therapeutically effective blood and tissue concentrations are not reached; in others, metabolism may be so slow that usual doses have toxic effects. Individual drug metabolism rates are influenced by genetic factors, coexisting disorders (particularly chronic liver disorders and advanced heart failure), and drug interactions (especially those involving induction or inhibition of metabolism). For many drugs, metabolism occurs in 2 phases. Phase I reactions involve formation of a new or modified f...

2. the sum of the physical and chemical processes by which living organized substance is built up and maintained ( There are two phases of metabolism: the anabolic and the catabolic phases. The anabolic, or constructive, phase is concerned with the conversion of simpler compounds derived from the nutrients into living, organized substances that the body cells can use. In the catabolic, or destructive, phase these organized substances are reconverted into simpler compounds, with the release of energy necessary for the proper functioning of the body cells. The rate of metabolism can be increased by exercise; by elevated body temperature, as in a high fever, which can more than double the metabolic rate; by hormonal activity, such as that of thyroxine, insulin, and epinephrine; and by specific dynamic action that occurs following the ingestion of a meal. The basal metabolic rate refers to the lowest rate obtained while an individual is at complete physical and mental rest. Metabolic rate usually is expressed in terms of the amount of heat liberated during the chemical reactions of metabolism. About 25 per cent of all energy from nutrients is utilized by the body to carry on its normal function; the remainder becomes heat. 1. The sum of the chemical and physical changes occurring in tissue, consisting of anabolism (those reactions that convert small molecules into large), and catabolism (those reactions that convert large molecules into small), including both endogenous large ...

Recent Examples on the Web Chromium Chromium is a mineral that is essential for the body to metabolize carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. — Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 25 May 2023 Covid-19 treatment Paxlovid can interact with common heart medications, doctors warn Paxlovid may keep the body from metabolizing certain drugs, leading to higher drug concentrations that can lead to serious or life-threatening reactions, according to an FDA Emergency Use Authorization Fact Sheet. — Janelle Chavez, CNN, 16 Mar. 2023 For example, several companies now claim that their products can guide depression treatment by testing the genetics of certain liver enzymes, which are responsible for metabolizing antidepressants and all other medications. — Laura Newberry, Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2023 There are also computational models that can predict whether a compound with certain chemical characteristics is likely to be toxic, how much of it will reach different organs and how quickly it will be metabolized. — Emily Anthes, New York Times, 7 Mar. 2023 The building blocks for Newlight—methanotrophs, the methane-eating microbes that metabolize gas into PHB, a compostable and biodegradable bioplastic—were discovered nearly a century ago. — Ian Mount, Fortune, 10 Jan. 2023 This mutation makes the cave fish unable to metabolize the amino acid tyrosine to make the pigment melanin, resulting in their colorless appearance. — Viviane Callier, Scientific American, 1 Sep. 2022 These foods take long...