Protein Breakdown – An important aspect of protein processing in the body:
When you eat protein, it enters the stomach which is then stimulated to digest the protein. This means that the protein you eat is first broken down to smaller fragments of the original large protein molecule. These smaller fragments of protein then enter the digestive tract where they are in turn broken down to even smaller fragments consisting of either 2 – 4 amino acid building blocks joined together, or free amino acids. It is these smaller fragments which can be absorbed by the body and processed (broken down further or modified) and distributed to the rest of the body via the liver. These amino acids are then utilized by the various body tissues, muscles and organs to synthesize the proteins they need when and where they are needed.
This means that to utilize the protein you ingest, your body must be able to break down the protein to the amino acids before it can utilize these protein building blocks to make the necessary proteins on demand in your own tissues and organs.
There are some instances where one’s capacity to initially digest protein can be impaired. Factors such as exercise, age, stress and infection can limit the capacity of the stomach to release the necessary hydrochloric acid into the stomach chamber, which starts the breakdown (digestion) process. Thus, there may be a requirement to provide some assistance to the digestive processes under these conditions.
The range of protein products produced by TOP Nutrition has been predigested to produce the smaller protein products necessary to stimulate the digestive processes. The products also include a compound called betaine-HCl, which is a safe way of providing a small level of HCl to assist in the initial digestion steps in the stomach. Thus these products have been designed be more amenable to easy digestion and would be appropriate to a wide range of people requiring protein support for their lifestyle activities.