Metabolism

Metabolism is one of the most important elements of the human organism, it occupies the center of all physical and chemical processes that occur in our body, which is why we must pay special attention to its study, since important aspects such as obtaining energy, digestion, weight loss or weight gain, among others, are strongly related to the metabolic processes that occur inside our body.

In this guide we will discuss some of the most relevant aspects of metabolism and its functions, so that you can broaden your knowledge on the subject.

Definition

When we talk about metabolism, we are referring to the whole network of physical and chemical processes that occur inside our body. It is the way our body uses or converts energy. Metabolic processes are those that allow human life and development from birth to death.

Metabolic processes are usually grouped into two very distinct groups, catabolic processes and anabolic processes. An anabolic reaction is understood as one that is capable of creating or constructing the different cellular components such as proteins. Catabolic processes, on the other hand, are those that, by releasing energy, allow the degradation of different compounds present in our organism, as is the case of glucose. It is usually said that the anabolic process is the one of construction, while the catabolic one is the one of destruction, which are combined in a perfect balance to allow the adequate development of human life.

Anabolic function

As we said before, the anabolic function is the one that is in charge of building the different complex cellular structures that our organism needs. Anabolism is the antagonist par excellence of catabolism, although the latter requires the existence of the catabolic function to obtain the energy necessary for the construction of new tissues.

A clear example of the intervention of the anabolic function is found when building our muscle mass, which would be impossible if this function were not present in our metabolism. The anabolic function is also often called biosynthesis, because its essence lies in the synthesis of new organic molecules.

Catabolic function

Catabolic function is the opposite and complementary function of anabolic function. The catabolic process is extremely important and is the basis of human life, since it is used to degrade food and generate the energy that we will use in the rest of the vital functions of the organism. Digestion is a key process that demonstrates the importance of catabolism for human life, si