Tag: book excerpt

What does Vitamin B6 do? Book Excerpt of the Week

What does Vitamin B6 do? Book Excerpt of the Week

greeneyedguide

For last week’s book excerpt from the Energy Drink Guide, we talked about where we get Vitamin B6 (aside from energy drinks, other sports supplements, and fortified foods like breakfast cereals). This week’s book excerpt is about what vitamin B6 does.

Vitamin B6 helps the body make protein. Ever heard of essential and non-essential amino acids? Vitamin B6 helps our bodies make those non-essential amino acids…(through a process called transamination, for you biochem nerds). B6 also helps us maintain optimal blood sugar levels.

what does b6 do

Gluconeogenesis = creating new glucose.
Glycogenolysis = breaking down the stored form of glucose into its itty-bitty pieces.

Breaking down the stored form of glucose means we can tap into those reserves when we need them. And this isn’t just for emergencies – our bodies go through glycogenolysis all the time. If B-vitamins were all Marvel Avengers, Vitamin B6 would be another star member, like thiamin, riboflavin, and especially (my favorite) niacin.

Vitamin B6 has several more jobs that are important and not boring like other vitamins (*cough, #boringbasicbiotin ) BUT we’ll have to talk about that next week and/or you’ll have to get a copy of my book “Are You a Monster or a Rock Star: A Guide to Energy Drinks – How They Work, Why They Work, How To Use Them Safely” available on Audible, Amazon, and wherever books are sold.

To learn more about riboflavin and the other B-vitamins, stay tuned for next week’s book excerpt as we continue our page-by-page exploration through the Energy Drink Guide.

Let’s connect!

 

Where Does Vitamin B6 Come From? Science of Energy Drinks – Book Excerpt of the Week

greeneyedguide

For this week’s book excerpt from the Energy Drink Guide, we enter the Vitamin B6 chapter of Part Three: How Do They Work. Vitamin B6 is often included in energy drinks, AS WELL AS many other sports supplements! Before we get into what B6 does, let’s talk about where we get it.

Vitamin B6
We get B6 from MUSCLES! When we get to what B6 does, it will become obvious why B6 lives in muscles.

*no spoilers*.

Meat and fish are the best sources of B6 because meat has muscles…Potatoes have eyes though. (ha-ha-ha…) Potatoes are a good source of B6, as well as carrots, spinach, avocados, and bananas.
Stay tuned for more book excerpts from my book about energy drinks and their ingredients, “Are You a Monster or a Rock Star: A Guide to Energy Drinks, How They Work, Why They Work How To Use Them Safely” available on Audible and also on Amazon as an e-book, paperback, and hardcover!

Let’s connect!

Folate and the Exploding Pen – Book Excerpt of the Week

Folate and the Exploding Pen – Book Excerpt of the Week

greeneyedguide

For the Book Excerpt of the Week we talk about what FOLATE DOES. Folate’s job is to move a single Carbon atom from point A to point B. It SOUNDS boring like how Boring Basic Biotin moves a Carbon Dioxide molecule from A to B. However the stakes are MUCH HIGHER with Folate.

Regardless of whether it came into your body as folate (the natural form from food) or folic acid (the synthetic kind from fortified food) this vitamin becomes the coenzyme tetrahydrofolate, THF.

THF is a key player in DNA synthesis, amino acid metabolism, and the formation and maturation of red and white blood cells.

<<THF = BFD>>

The cells along your GI tract are so constantly used they go through a lot of wear and tear. They need constant supplies of DNA so they can keep growing and multiplying fast enough to keep us healthy. Without THF, the cells can’t divide and conquer. Instead, they grow larger and larger until they explode and die!

Folate is added to energy drinks, but it doesn’t “give you energy”, its job is so much more important than that!

LEARN MORE about the science behind energy drink ingredients on my Insta page (@greeneyedguide) and at Facebook.com/GreenEyedGuide. You can get your copy of my book “Are You a Monster or a Rock Star: A Guide to Energy Drinks – How They Work, Why They Work, How to Use Them Safely” on Amazon and Audible and wherever books are sold!!!

http://www.audible.com/offers/30free?asin=B074R1GR94

❓Does your favorite energy drink have folate❓

STAY TUNED every Monday/Tuesday for more book excerpts and the science behind energy drink ingredients as we continue our page-by-page exploration through the Energy Drink Guide.

Let’s connect!

The Difference Between Folate and Folic Acid – Book Excerpt of the Week

The Difference Between Folate and Folic Acid – Book Excerpt of the Week

greeneyedguide

Have you ever wondered about the difference between folic acid and folate? In this Book Excerpt of the Week, we enter the Folate/Folic Acid chapter of the Energy Drink Guide: Part III – How Do They Work. Before we talk about what folate does, we have to talk about what it is, and where it comes from.

Folic Acid book excerpt

Folic Acid is a term reserved for the SYNTHETIC form of folate whereas Folate or Folacin are general names for a group of nutritionally identical compounds.

If the amino acid Glutamic Acid is a bling necklace, Folic Acid always has one, whereas the natural kind, folate, almost always has three.

Folic acid is synthetic but still prevents spina bifida like natural folate. In fact, because folic acid has less bling (fewer glutamic acids hanging off it) it is easier to digest than natural folate.

Folic Acid and folate are indistinguishable once they’re absorbed and get to the liver.

🌱🌳🌿☘🍀FOLATE gets its name from FOLIUM, the Latin word for LEAF. And wouldn’t you know it, dark green leafy veggies are the best sources of folate. Other sources include asparagus, dried beans, eggs, fortified breakfast cereals (obviously) and oranges.

❓Does your favorite energy drink have folate❓

STAY TUNED every Monday/Tuesday for more book excerpts and the science behind energy drink ingredients as we continue our page-by-page exploration through the Energy Drink Guide.

Let’s connect!

Boring Basic Biotin knows only one move: Book Excerpt of the Week

Boring Basic Biotin knows only one move: Book Excerpt of the Week

greeneyedguide

Biotin is really boring. Biotin only knows how to do one thing. Biotin helps our bodies derive energy from fats, carbohydrates, and proteins. New research suggests more than 2,000 human genes depend on biotin for expression. However, all of these processes and mechanisms described above involve delivering carbon dioxide from one place to another.

Biotin is like a dancer who only knows one move or a guitar player who only knows one chord

This is not to say biotin is not important, of course it is. For example, a fatty acid chain that is 3 carbons long is really hard to metabolize. It’s more difficult than three people trying to walk side-by-side down a narrow sidewalk. If you have four people, you can double-up and walk in two rows of two.

After biotin slaps on another carbon dioxide molecule to make the chain an even number of carbons long, it’s a lot easier for our bodies to continue that metabolism reaction.

I would love to tell you more about the specific enzyme that has this even-numbers-only fetish, but all my biochem books are in a box. Did you know GreenEyedGuide is moving from So Cal to Wisconsin? You can read about it on my other blog, West Coast Meets Midwest.

Biotin is important, but I will always think it is boring.

To learn more about the reactions where biotin gets to be the hero, get your copy of MY BOOK: “Are You a Monster or a Rock Star: A Guide to Energy Drinks — How They Work, Why They Work, How to Use Them Safely”

STAY TUNED every Monday for more book excerpts and the science behind energy drink ingredients as we continue our page-by-page exploration through the Energy Drink Guide.

Let’s connect!