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For example, the values for glucose, sucrose, and starch are 15.57, 16.48 and 17.48 kilojoules per gram (3.72, 3.94 and 4.18 kcal/g) respectively. The differing energy density of foods (fat, alcohols, carbohydrates and proteins) lies mainly in their varying proportions of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms.
Fat has a food energy content of 38 kilojoules per gram (9 kilocalories per gram) proteins and carbohydrates 17 kJ/g (4 kcal/g). [ 2 ] Water makes up a large proportion of the total mass ingested as part of a normal diet but it does not provide any nutritional value.
The unit is most commonly used to express food energy, namely the specific energy (energy per mass) of metabolizing different types of food. For example, fat (triglyceride lipids) contains 9 kilocalories per gram (kcal/g), while carbohydrates (sugar and starch) and protein contain approximately 4 kcal/g. [29] Alcohol in food contains 7 kcal/g. [30]
The energy yield from a gram of fatty acids is approximately 9 kcal (37 kJ), much higher than the 4 kcal (17 kJ) for carbohydrates. Since the hydrocarbon portion of fatty acids is hydrophobic , these molecules can be stored in a relatively anhydrous (water-free) environment.
Based on the work of Atwater, it became common practice to calculate energy content of foods using 4 kcal/g for carbohydrates and proteins and 9 kcal/g for lipids. [2] The system was later improved by Annabel Merrill and Bernice Watt of the USDA, who derived a system whereby specific calorie conversion factors for different foods were proposed. [3]
As a fuel, proteins provide as much energy density as carbohydrates: 17 kJ (4 kcal) per gram; in contrast, lipids provide 37 kJ (9 kcal) per gram. The most important aspect and defining characteristic of protein from a nutritional standpoint is its amino acid composition. [2]
Carbohydrates and proteins provide 17 kJ approximately (4 kcal) of energy per gram, while fats provide 37 kJ (9 kcal) per gram. [8] However, the net energy derived from the macronutrients depends on such factors as absorption and digestive effort, which vary substantially from instance to instance.
Glycogen is a branched biopolymer consisting of linear chains of glucose residues with an average chain length of approximately 8–12 glucose units and 2,000-60,000 residues per one molecule of glycogen. [20] [21] Like amylopectin, glucose units are linked together linearly by α(1→4) glycosidic bonds from one glucose to the next. Branches ...