Can someone explain to me what "amino acids" are like I'm a six year-old?

Question

It's seems pretty complicated on Wikipedia and I would just like a basic understanding of what they are and how they benefit fitness, etc.

The part of "like I'm a six a year old" was taken from the movie Philelphia with D. Washington. I just thought it was funny.

Answer 1

Amino acids are like building blocks.

Proteins are machines your body needs to do special things: insulin is a protein your body uses to lower blood sugar concentrations. Your muscles are made out of a few different kinds of proteins that work together to contract, and allow you to push, pull, or run.

Also, the idea of taking "extra" amino acids is only a gimmick to get people to buy them. If you eat animal protein (fish, chicken, beef, eggs) then you will have more than enough amino acids to do what your body needs.

Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins.

Answer 2

There are 4 basic amino acids. (look them up please, I'm a chemist and don't remember them)They have a fairly basic chemical structure and a very unique physical structure. "Nature" seems to have been able to make these from very basic chemicals and possibly lightning hits. When they are tossed together in a reasonable concentration, they like to associate with other and form chains and then DNA and RNA and then proteins and then life. Some where the
G_D word enters but the scientists argue about this. I know this isn't great but at some point, science gets in the way of religion or vice versa. I just think that it is such a neat 'coincidence' that really simple science can be assembled into something that scientists can't make. Themselves. They can manipulate the daylights out of it, but not make the simplists part of it. All parts of your body require amino acids to make protein for muscles and cells.

Answer 3

Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins. They link together to form such structural proteins as muscle and such functional proteins as insulin and ACTH.

You have already had abuse from xlittlem and cinnamoroll, who misunderstood you to say that you were a six-year-old. You have also had excellent answers from dmallard and robert B. You should find a way to reward the latter two.

Amino acids are either essential (humans need them in their vegetable diet) or nonessential (humans can make them from other stuff). Essential amino acids include phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan. Nonessential are glycine, alanine, aspartic acid, glutamic acid (really!), glutamine, and asparagine.

It is not true that vegan diet is good in all circumstances. There was a couple just put away in prison for having starved their child to death on a vegan diet. Humans must eat all foods to get a balance of amino acids. Plants have a lot, but only a part of what's needed.

Those answerers are correct also who advise you to avoid eating a lot of amino acid supplements.

Answer 4

First, not all Conservatives are against the gay lifestyle. Those that are, though, use that argument because those are just their beliefs. They may not like it and they may not want to explain it...but that's not a valid argument as to why homosexuals can't show affection towards each other like heterosexuals do (there's a fine line between appropriate and inappropriate PDA -- quick kisses are fine, making out and/or groping is not, for any sexuality). They can be against the gay lifestyle all they want, but homosexuals are a part of the world and if some parents want their kids to live in a bubble, that's their decision...but they can't make the world their version of "perfect". If they want to keep their children from things they don't agree with, then they should keep them to a place they can control...their home. Otherwise, i suggest they open their minds.

Answer 5

Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins which make up our muscles, skin, hair, etc. They are so named because each one contains an amine ( -NH2) functional group as well as a carboxyl ( -COOH) acid functional group. Both groups plus a hydrogen are guaranteed to be bonded to a middle carbon. The last bond to the middle carbon is by an -R group, R being an arbitrary symbol. The identity of the R group is different for each amino acid.
In water, amino acids exist as "Zwitterion"s because the proton (hydrogen) leaves the carboxyl to join with the amine like so:

(+) H3-N-CRH-COO (-)

The makeup of proteins is blueprinted by tRNA codons. Certain three-base-long sequences of uracil, adenine, guanine and cytosine "code" for specific amino acids to be recruited to the ribosome during protein synthesis.
In all there are 60+ tRNA codons coding for 20 possible amino acids.

Answer 6

Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins; there are 20 different ones that make up the proteins found in humans.

They are molecules generally composed of carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen, and occasionally sulfur.

At one end of the molecule, nitrogen and hydrogen form what is known as "an amino group".

At another end of the molecule, carbon and oxgen form an acid, or more correctly "carboxy acid" group.

In addition to the amino and carboxy acid groups, different amino acids have additional chains of atoms hooked together in "side chains" which branch away from the amino and carboxy acid groups.

All 20 amino acids have identical amino and carboxy acid groups, but different side chains. Its the different side chains that give the different amino acids different properties.

The amino acids are combined into long chains of amino acids for form proteins. In these chains, the amino group of one amino acid is "hooked" or "linked" to the carboxy acid group of another to form a "peptide" bond.

See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amino_acid

Answer 7

ur 6 and u already know about Wikipedia and amino acids, at least enough to look it up?!? Dang, & ur language doesn't sound like a 6 year old.......... i didn't even know probably half those words when i was 6..... basic understanding?!?

Answer 8

very complicated

Answer 9

you are not six.