Does the metabolism of ingested lipids and fats yield a net gain of water to the human body?

Question

Complete oxidation of fats must yield a net gain of water? This is perhaps the reason that hibernating animals, bears, etc, do not die of dehydration?

Answer 1

Yes. Even though it takes water to hydrolyze the fatty acid to acetyl-CoA, water is generated when the acetyl-CoA are subsequently oxidized. The overall equation for the complete oxidation of palmitic aid is:

palmitate + 23 O2 + 129Pi + 129ADP ------>
16CO2 + 145 H2O + 129ATP

Answer 2

This processes uses water rather than producing water. Every bond that is broken by hydrolysis uses one molecule of water: an H+ to fill up one "space" and an OH- to fill up the other "space".