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The Specific Dynamic Action

The specific dynamic action (SDA) represents the effort required for the body to break down different foods before they can enter the bloodstream. The document states that carbohydrates have a 7% SDA, meaning 7% of calories are burned during digestion, while fats have a 12% SDA. Protein has the highest SDA at 30%, since breaking the bonds between amino acids requires significant energy.

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458 views

The Specific Dynamic Action

The specific dynamic action (SDA) represents the effort required for the body to break down different foods before they can enter the bloodstream. The document states that carbohydrates have a 7% SDA, meaning 7% of calories are burned during digestion, while fats have a 12% SDA. Protein has the highest SDA at 30%, since breaking the bonds between amino acids requires significant energy.

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api-416110395
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
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The specific dynamic action (SDA) of a food represents the effort or energy that the body

has to use to break down the food until it is reduced to its basic unit, which is the only form in
which it can enter the bloodstream. How much work this involves depends on the food’s
consistency and its molecular structure.

When we eat 100 calories of white sugar, the work the body must do to absorb it burns up
only 7 calories, so 93 usable calories remain. Thus, the SDA for carbohydrates is 7 percent.

When we eat 100 calories of butter or oil, assimilating them is a bit more laborious. The body
burns 12 calories in absorbing them, leaving only 88 usable calories. Thus the SDA of fats is
12 percent.

Finally, to assimilate 100 calories of pure protein -- egg whites, lean fish, or nonfat cottage
cheese -- the task is enormous. This is because protein is composed of an aggregate of very
long chains of molecules whose basic links, amino acids, are connected to each other by a
strong bond that requires a lot more work to be broken down. It takes 30 calories just to
assimilate the proteins, leaving only 70 usable calories. Thus the SDA of proteins is 30
percent.

Essential Amino Acids

 Histidine
 Isoleucine
 Leucine
 Valine
 Lysine
 Methionine
 Phenylalanine
 Threonine
 Tryptophan

Non Essential Amino Acids

 Alanine
 Arginine
 Asparagine
 Aspartic Acid
 Cysteine
 Glutamic acid
 Glutamine
 Glycine
 Proline
 Serine
 Tyrosine

Nutrition || Sudipta Chakraborty Page 1


Nitrogen balance is a measure of nitrogen input minus nitrogen output.

Nitrogen Balance = Nitrogen intake - Nitrogen loss

Sources of nitrogen intake include meat, dairy, eggs, nuts and legumes, and grains and
cereals. Examples of nitrogen losses include urine, feces, sweat, hair, and skin.

Blood urea nitrogen can be used in estimating nitrogen balance, as can the urea
concentration in urine.

There Are Three Basic States Of Nitrogen Balance

1. Positive: This is the optimal state for muscle growth - where the nitrogen intake is
greater than nitrogen output. Essentially, it shows the body has sufficiently recovered
from its last workout. The greater the nitrogen balance, the faster is workout recovery.
This is the body's anabolic state.
2.
3. Negative: This is the worst state a bodybuilder can find themselves in - where nitrogen
loss is greater than nitrogen intake. Not only is nitrogen drawn away from muscle, where
it is needed for growth, it is also taken from the vital organs where serious damage can
occur. Of course, negative nitrogen balance also destroys muscle and is consequently
considered a catabolic state.

Nutrition || Sudipta Chakraborty Page 2

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