Amino Acid Weight Loss

By Dr. Edward F. Group III, DC, ND, DACBN
updated on 11/19/2007 at 03:05PM

Amino acids are essential nutrients that the body uses for a wide number of processes and functions. New research suggests that these compounds may also play a role in aiding one’s weight loss efforts.

What Are Amino Acids?

Amino acids are essentially the building blocks of protein. There are approximately 28 known amino acids that are needed to build the proteins that the body needs for growth, repair, and maintenance of body tissues. The body can make eleven amino acids on its own. These include arginine, alanine, asparagines, aspartic acid, cystine, glutamine, glutamic acid, glycine, praline, serine, and tyrosine.

The others, however, must come from the diet. These amino acids, also referred to as essential amino acids, are isopeucine, methionine, leucine, lysine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, and valine. Other amino acids, such as carnitine and histidine are not used for protein building, but they are still important to bodily functions.

What Foods Are Good Sources of Amino Acids?

Amino acids are found in a number of dietary sources such as meat and poultry, fish, eggs, and dairy products. Vegetarian sources of protein also contain amino acids, however, they may not provide a complete assortment of the essential amino acids that the body needs. You can overcome these deficiencies by eating a wide variety of plant-based foods. For example, whole grain foods contain most amino acids, but they are lacking in lysine; whereas legumes provide an adequate supply of lysine.

Why Are Amino Acids Important?

The body needs amino acids in order to maintain proper functioning. If one amino acid is deficient or absent, the effectiveness of all of the others will be significantly reduced. Amino acids play a vital role in maintaining the health of the body’s muscles, ligaments, tendons, organs, glands, nails, hair and most body fluids. In addition, the central nervous system cannot function properly without amino acids, which are necessary for the brain to both send and receive information. Amino acids are responsible for functions such as muscle contraction, the formation of tissues, the regulation of the body’s pH balance, and the production of antibodies.

What Is Amino Acid Weight Loss?

Many researchers are beginning to suggest that while environment certainly plays a role in one’s weight gain or loss, genetics may also be a prominent factor. People who are overweight or obese may simply have a slower metabolism or a weaker ability to burn fat and calories than those who are not. In this sense, amino acid weight loss may be possible by supplementing the diet with certain amino acids to help the body burn fat more efficiently and suppress appetite.

Amino acids that may aid in weight loss include carnitine, phenylalanine, and tryptophan. Of these, tryptophan is the most famous as it is responsible for the notorious sleepiness that one feels after eating a large Thanksgiving meal. Tryptophan is found in excess in lean turkey meat, and it helps one to feel full and satisfied. Unfortunately, this feeling isn’t produced until after you’ve eaten the big meal!

Carnitine, on the other hand, plays a more significant role in amino acid weight loss. This amino acid is vital to the production of energy for the heart and other muscles and for the transfer of fatty acids into the cell for burning. This boosts the body's metabolism and provides energy for both the brain and the muscles. Many professional athletes supplement their diet with carnitine in order to increase energy levels and stamina, and to lower blood levels of fat.

Although the body can manufacture some carnitine on its own from the essential amino acids lysine and methionine, many people are deficient in this nutrient. L-carnitine fumarate is a popular weight loss supplement available in most pharmacies and health food stores.

About the Author

Dr. Edward F. Group III continues to develop, sell and evaluate exclusively high-end natural and organic healthcare products to support a wide range of health conditions. The products we promote are free of toxic tag-along herbicides, insecticides, pesticides, heavy metals, fumigants, irradiation, liver-toxic glues, binders, or gelatin capsules with animal-source risk and toxic preservatives.