Metabolism plays a very important role in the healthy functioning of the human body. People who watch their weight or are trying to lose weight need to pay special attention to their metabolism. There are a lot of misconceptions surrounding metabolism and overall metabolic health. It is important to understand the concept and workings of metabolic health to achieve a boost in metabolism.
What are metabolism and metabolic health?
Metabolism is defined as a set of life-sustaining chemical reactions in organisms. There are three main purposes of metabolism:
- Conversion of food to energy for smooth functioning of cellular processes
- Conversion of food to building blocks for protein, lipids, nucleic acids, and some carbohydrates.
- Elimination of metabolic waste
Metabolism as a whole allows organisms to grow and reproduce, maintain their structure, and respond to their environment.
The word metabolism can also refer to “the sum of all chemical reactions that occur in living organisms, including digestion and the transportation of substances into and between different cells”.
Metabolic health refers to the ability of the body to digest and absorb nutrients from the food that is eaten without unhealthy spikes in blood sugar, blood fat, inflammation, and insulin.
What are the types of metabolism?
Metabolism can be divided into two categories, anabolism and catabolism.
Catabolism: Larger molecules are broken down through the process of catabolism. This means that the breakdown and oxidization of food molecules is done through catabolism. Catabolic reactions provide the energy and components needed by anabolic reactions.
Anabolism: Anabolism refers to the constructive process through which energy released during catabolism is used to synthesize complex molecules. The complex molecules that make up cellular structures are constructed step-by-step from smaller and simpler precursors.
What factors affect metabolism?
The rate of metabolism varies from person to person and is dependent on various factors:
Age: Metabolic rate generally slows down with age. This happens due to loss in muscle tissue as well as hormonal changes. Contrarily, growing children have an extremely high metabolic rate.
Muscle mass: Muscles require a significantly larger amount of energy than fat tissues to function. Therefore, the more muscle mass a person has, the higher the metabolic rate.
Sex: The metabolic rate of men generally tends to be higher than that of women.
Genetics: Some people have a genetic inclination towards higher metabolic rates. Along with that, in some cases people might be genetically pre-disposed for health conditions affecting body metabolism.
Physical activity: Exercising builds up muscle mass and requires a lot of energy as well, thus increasing the metabolism of the body.
Apart from these, metabolism can also be affected by the size of the body, environmental factors like the weather, hormonal factors such as thyroids, drugs, and diet, among others.
How does metabolism affect body weight?
Metabolism helps the body convert food into energy. Researchers believe that Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) accounts for approximately 70% of the body’s energy usage, including the working of involuntary muscles like breathing, digestion, pumping of the heart, etc. The energy used in these processes is more or less constant.
The way one can boost BMR is through physical activity, as it triggers the breakdown of more calories. Coupled with proper and regular exercise metabolism can be improved even further.
What are the ways to improve metabolism?
- Increasing protein intake: Protein burns the maximum amount of calories
- Adding spices to the diet: Certain spices like pepper and powdered chilies can increase the metabolism of the body.
- Working out: Aerobic exercise does not help in building muscle mass. However, it boosts up the metabolism in the hours post workout. High intensity exercise helps with increasing the resting metabolic rate for a longer period of time.
- Building muscle mass: Building muscle mass helps burn more calories.The human body constantly burns calories, even when a person is sitting idle. This resting metabolic rate is much higher in people with more muscle. Every pound of muscle uses about 6 calories a day just to sustain itself, while each pound of fat burns only 2 calories daily. That small difference can add up over time.
- Increasing caffeine intake: Increasing caffeine intake can temporarily boost metabolism.
- Drinking enough water and green tea: Metabolism is better in a hydrated body. Green tea also helps with increasing metabolism and reducing weight. The body needs water to process calories. If a person is even mildly dehydrated, the metabolism may slow down. In one study, adults who drank eight or more glasses of water a day were seen to burn more calories than those who drank four.
- Managing stress levels: Increased stress produces abnormal amounts of cortisol in the body, leading to irregular eating patterns which reduces metabolism.
- Getting proper rest: Lack of quality sleep is associated with poor metabolism
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