The Macronutrients-II:

UNIT 3 THE MACRONUTRIENTS-II: Proteins and Fats

PROTEINS AND FATS

Structure
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Proteins
3.3 Fats
3.4 Let Us Sum Up
3.5 Glossary
3.6 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

3.1 INTRODUCTION
In Unit 2 you learnt some aspects relating to two categories of macronutrients i.e.
carbohydrates and water. This unit will cover another two categories of
macronutrients i.e. proteins and fats. Like carbohydrates, proteins and fats are
also organic compounds. This unit discusses the nature, functions and food sources
of proteins and fats. In addition, the processes of digestion, absorption and
utilisation of proteins and fats in the body are also discussed.
Objectives
After studying this unit, you will be able to:
• describe the chemical nature of proteins and fats;
• list the food sources of proteins and fats;
• state the role of proteins and fats in the body; and
• describe the processes of digestion, absorption and utilisation of proteins
and fats in the body.

3.2 PROTEINS
You have so far studied about carbohydrates and water. Let us now concentrate
on the study of yet another category of macronutrients i.e. proteins. Proteins like
carbohydrates are organic compounds but are distinct from carbohydrates in
certain respects. Besides carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, proteins also contain
another element called nitrogen. The basic building blocks of proteins are nitrogen-
containing units called amino acids. Amino acids are joined or linked together in
chains by linkages called peptide linkages. Several hundreds or even thousands
of amino acids are strung together in specific strands and coils to form proteins
(Figure 3.1).
You may be amazed to know that these proteins are built up of just 22 amino
acids. Food has an almost endless variety of proteins and no two proteins have
similar structure. This is because the twenty or more amino acids are present in
varying proportions and are arranged in varying sequences in different kinds of
proteins. Of these about 8 cannot be manufactured by the body while the rest 37
Basic Concepts in Nutrition-I can. Those which cannot be manufactured by the body must be supplied by the
diet. These amino acids are called essential. The amino acids which can be
manufactured by the body need not, of course, be supplied by the diet. They are
hence called non-essential, Here the terms “essential” and “non-essential” only
refer to whether it is essential or not essential to provide them in the diet. We must
remember that for the synthesis of body proteins both essential and non-essential
amino acids are equally important.

Figure 3.1: Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins

Table 3.1lists the essential and non-essential amino acids.

Table 3.1: Essential and non-essential Amino Acids

Essential Amino Acids Non-essential Amino Acids

Isoleucine Alanine
Leucine Asparagine
Lysine Aspartic acid
Methionine Cystine
Phenylalanine Cysteine
Threonine Glutamic acid
Tryptophan Glutamine
Valine Glycine
Histidine* Hydroxyproline
Hydroxylysine
Proline
Serine
Tyrosine

38 *Essential for infants only

The quality of food proteins depends on the number and the proportion of The Macronutrients-II:
essential amino acids contained in them. Proteins are obtained from both Proteins and Fats
animal and plant foods. The proteins in animal foods are of good quality
because they contain all essential amino acids in the required amounts and
proportions.
On the other hand, the proteins in plant food generally lack one or two
essential amino acids and, therefore, are not of good quality. For example,
cereals are poor in lysine and rich in methionine. On the other hand, pulses
are poor in methionine and rich in lysine. When cereals are combined with
pulses in the same meal then the quality of protein improves. Protein quality
of plant foods can be thus improved by the combination of one or more kinds
of foods of plant origin. If you look at the traditional Indian diets (whatever
the region you may belong to), you will find many dishes which are prepared
by using either a cereal-pulse combination as in dosa (rice, urad dal); dal-
roti; rice-dal or cereal-animal food combinations as in dalia (milk, broken
wheat); rice-fish. This is one of the ways of improving the quality of food
proteins. By a judicious combination of foods of animal and plant origin,
you can ensure that the protein consumed will be of good quality. You must
remember that even small amounts of animal protein with vegetable protein
in a meal greatly improves protein quality.
Food Sources: Here is the list of some of the rich sources of proteins. The
list is vast and includes: milk, milk products (like curd, khoa, paneer), flesh
foods (meat, fish, poultry), eggs, nuts and oilseeds (groundnuts, almond,
cashewnut, walnut) and pulses (bengal gram, lentils, green gram, rajmah, soya
bean). Among pulses, soyabean is particularly rich in protein. Protein content
of some of these foods is given in Table 3.2.
Table 3.2: Protein-rich Foods

Foodstuff Amount of Protein (g)

(per 100g of edible portion of food)

Food of Animal Origin

Flesh Foods:
Goat meat 21.4
Fish (Pomfret), white 19.02
Egg (Poultry, whole) 13.43
Milk and Milk Products:
Milk (cow) 3.2
Khoa 16.34
Paneer (Cottage cheese) 18.86
Foods of Plant origin
Nuts and Oilseeds
Cashewnut 18.78
Groundnut 23.65
Pulses
Soyabean (Brown) 35.58
Rajmah (Brown) 19.50
Bengal gram (whole) 18.77

Source: Indian Food Composition Tables (2017), NIN, ICMR 39

Basic Concepts in Nutrition-I If you look at the current prices of foods of animal origin like meat, fish,
poultry, you will find that most of these are very costly. The only animal
foods which are relatively less expensive (though expensive as compared to
plant foods) are milk and eggs. As the protein in foods of animal origin are
of good quality, one should try to include small amounts of these foods in the
daily diet. Milk is the only animal food used by both vegetarians and non-
vegetarians. Although the protein content of l00g milk is only 3.2g yet it
contains protein of very good quality and is rich in lysine. Hence, even a
small amount of milk added to a basic Indian diet of dal-roti greatly enhances
the protein quality of the whole diet. One should therefore try to include at
least a small amount of milk in the daily diet. Non vegetarians, who cannot
afford meat, fish and chicken can eat eggs which are cheaper and as nutritious
as meat, fish or chicken.
Let us now take a look at the foods of plant origin. According to Table 3.2,
pulses, nuts and oilseeds are rich sources of proteins. But these foods are also
very expensive. Pulses are the major source of protein in Indian diets. One can
try to improve the quality of cereal proteins by combining them with pulses. A
small amount of milk, if it can be afforded, will further improve the quality of food
protein.
Check Your Progress Exercise 1
1) How can we improve the protein quality of cereals?
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2) List the sources of animal and vegetable proteins in your diet and
compare their cost.
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Functions: Remember your childhood days when your parents/elders forced
you to drink milk. They always said that you need milk for the proper growth
of your body. Now, as an adult and a student of nutrition, you would realise
that they were right. Milk is a good source of protein and proteins do play
a role in growth and body-building. Let us now study the body-building and
other functions of proteins in detail. Some of the functions of proteins are
given below:
1) Body-building: Proteins supply amino acids for building new body
tissues and for the replacement of worn out tissues. Thus they help in
the growth and the maintenance of the body. For the constant growth of
human beings from birth till adulthood, a regular supply of dietary
protein is required. This does not mean that proteins are not needed
40 when growth ceases. Even during adulthood worn out body tissues need
 continuous replacement. Thus, proteins are required throughout life for The Macronutrients-II:
the growth and maintenance of the body. Proteins and Fats

2) Proteins as regulatory and protective substances: Proteins are also

part of some chemical substances essential for the regulation of vital
body processes. You are aware of the role of enzymes in the process of
digestion of food. All enzymes are proteins in nature. Like enzymes,
hormones are also chemical substances vital for the regulation of
metabolism as well as some other body processes. Some of the hormones
(like insulin) are proteins. Antibodies which protect the body from
illness are also proteins.
3) Proteins as carriers: Some of the proteins act as carriers and help to
transport certain substances from one place to another. One prominent example
of a protein carrier is haemoglobin, the red coloured protein-containing
substance present in the blood. Haemoglobin carries oxygen from the lungs
to various body tissues and carbon dioxide from body tissues to the lungs.
4) Energy-giving function: Proteins can also be broken down in the body to
provide energy. Each gram of protein yields about 4 Kcal. This, however,
is not the major function of proteins and only takes place when the diet does
not supply enough energy-giving nutrients such as carbohydrates and fats.
Digestion, absorption and utilisation: Dietary proteins chiefly consist of proteins
and small and large chains of amino acids. Digestion of proteins involves the
breakdown of these amino acid chains to their constituent amino acids.
Since saliva contains no proteolytic enzyme (enzymes which bring about breakdown
of proteins), protein digestion mainly occurs in the stomach and the small intestine.
Pepsin, a proteolytic enzyme, present in gastric juice breaks down proteins into
smaller amino acid chains. But pepsin itself cannot complete the digestion of
proteins. Partly broken down proteins from the stomach are released into the
small intestine where further digestion takes place in two steps :
i) Breakdown of partly digested proteins to smaller amino acid chains:
There are several proteolytic enzymes called proteases in the small intestine
which act on partly digested proteins and convert them to even smaller
amino acid chains.
ii) breakdown of amino acid chains to amino acids: Finally other kinds of
proteolytic enzymes called peptidases act on amino acid chains and convert
them to their constituent amino acids.
The metabolism of proteins is essentially the metabolism of amino acids as these
are the end products of the process of digestion of proteins. After digestion,
amino acids are carried by the blood to the liver. Here amino acids are used in
three ways: a) some of them are used for building of blood proteins; b) some are
retained in the liver and c) the rest enter the blood circulation as amino acids.
Some of the amino acids remain in circulation and others are taken up by body
tissues for protein synthesis whenever needed. It must be emphasized here that
only proteins of good quality are maximally utilised by the body for synthesis of
its own proteins.

Foods of animal origin like milk, meat have proteins of good quality. This is
because the animal proteins have the right proportions and amounts of all 41
Basic Concepts in Nutrition-I essential amino acids. Food of plant origin, on the other hand (like wheat,
rice and pulses), have protein of poor quality because they generally lack one
or more essential amino acids.

Thus the amino acids present in proteins of good quality can be used
optimally for body protein synthesis. On the other hand, proteins of poor
quality are less likely to be used for tissue protein synthesis. These proteins
(amino acids) are more likely to be used for other purposes including release of
energy. Like glucose, amino acids can also be oxidised or burnt in the body to
produce energy.

Cheek Your Progress Exercise 2

1) Fill in the blanks.

a) ............................. are the building blocks of all proteins.
b) Pulses are lacking in the amino acid ....................................... and
rich in ..................................... .
c) A good quality protein has the right ...................................... and
....................... of all essential amino acids.
d) Amino acids in proteins are linked together by the ................ linkage.
2) Indicate whether the following statements are true or false. Correct the
false statements.

a) Cereals contain relatively poor quality protein. (True/ False)

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b) The energy-giving function is the major function of proteins. (True/

False)
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c) All hormones are proteins. (True/ False)

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42 ........................................................................................................
 d) Haemoglobin is the red coloured substance present in the blood. The Macronutrients-II:
(True/False) Proteins and Fats

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e) Combination of cereal and pulse in a meal greatly improves the
quality of protein. (True/ False)
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3.3 FATS
Fats, like carbohydrates, are compounds of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.
However, they differ from carbohydrates in structure and properties. The term fat
includes fats and oils which are greasy in feel and insoluble in water. In addition
to fat and oils there are certain fat-like substances such as cholesterol which are
important in the body. You can learn more about cholesterol from Box 3.1 given
at the end of this section.
Let us first discuss the chemical nature of fats and oils. The major constituent of
all fats and oils are fatty acids and glycerol. The fatty acids are composed of
a chain of carbon atoms with other elements like hydrogen and oxygen. Some of
the common fatty acids are palmitic, stearic, oleic and linoleic acids. The fatty
acids can be classified in three categories on the basis of chain length. There are
shorter chain fatty acids (10 or fewer carbon atoms), long chain fatty acids (12 to
20 carbon atoms) and very long chain fatty acids (20 or more carbon atoms).
Whenever we talk about fats and oils we come across terms like saturated fatty
acids, unsaturated fatty acids and essential fatty acids. What do we mean by these
terms? A fatty acid chain of specified chain length (in terms of number of carbon
atoms) has a fixed maximum number of hydrogen atoms. Certain fatty acids have
as many hydrogen atoms as the carbon chain can hold. They are called saturated
fatty acids. On the other hand, unsaturated fatty acids have the capacity to
accommodate more hydrogen atoms i.e. some hydrogen atoms are missing from
the carbon chain.
Now let us learn about the essential fatty acids. There are two fatty acids which
cannot be synthesised in the body. These fatty acids have to be provided in the
diet and are referred to as essential fatty acids. These are linolenic and linoleic
acids. Both these fatty acids are unsaturated in nature.
You may recall that fats and oils are made up of glycerol and fatty acid. In fact
a molecule of fat or oil has three fatty acids and a molecule of glycerol. This is
called a triglyceride (Figure 3.2). Fats and oils are composed of many triglycerides
43
or fat molecules.
Basic Concepts in Nutrition-I

Figure 3.2: A molecule of fat (triglyceride)

Let us now see what is the difference between fats and oils. Both fats and
oils are triglycerides but fats are solid at room temperature and have a higher
proportion of saturated fatty acids e.g. ghee and butter. Oils, on the other
hand, have more unsaturated fatty acids and are liquid at room temperature
e.g. mustard oil, groundnut oil. Usually, the term fat is used for both fats
and oils.
Food Sources: Food sources of fats and oils include all common fats and oils
like ghee, vanaspati, mustard oil, groundnut oil, soya oil, coconut oil. They
are almost 100 per cent fat.
The presence of fat is also evident in other foodstuffs like milk and milk
products (curd, paneer, khoa), nuts and oilseeds (almond, groundnut, coconut,
mustard seeds), eggs and flesh foods. These are known as fat-rich foods.
They have 8 to 50 per cent fat in them (Table 3.3).
Table 3.3: Fat-rich Foods

Foodstuff Fat Content (g)

(per 100g edible portion)

Almond 58.49
Cashewnut 45.20
Groundnut 39.63
Coconut (fresh) 41.38
Mustard seeds 40.19
Soya bean (Brown) 19.82
Egg (Poultry Whole) 10.54
Mutton 13.30

Source: Indian Food Composition Tables (2017), NIN, ICMR .

44
You may be surprised to know that fat is present in very minute quantities The Macronutrients-II:
in almost all foodstuffs. Even foods like cereals, pulses, fruits, have fats in Proteins and Fats
them in minute quantities (invisible form). These foods contribute a substantial
amount of fat to Indian diets by virtue of being consumed in large quantities.

Functions: The term fat may be associated in your mind with a substance
which is harmful for health. You may consider fats as substances which would
make you overweight and may endanger your life by causing disease like
heart attack. This is a negative view about fats. Fats as macronutrients play
a crucial role in the body. Problems come up only if you take fats in excess
amounts i.e. more than the requirement of the body. You would realise how
important fats are for your body as you go through the following important
functions:

1) Source of energy: Fat is a concentrated source of energy. Each gram

of fat provides approximately 9 Kcal. This is more than double the
amount of energy supplied by a gram of carbohydrate or protein. Usually
only a small amount of fat is used to meet the energy needs of the body.
Most of the excess fat is stored in the body in specific tissues called
adipose tissue. Adipose tissue is present under the skin, and in the
abdominal region among others.
2) Satiety value: What happens when you consume fat-rich diets? Do you
feel hungry sooner or later? In fact, as you would have noticed, you feel
full and do not feel hungry for a long time. This is because fats remain
longer in the stomach and take more time to digest. Hence, like fibre,
fats also give satiety value.
3) Insulation and padding: You have read that fat is stored in the body in
adipose tissues at specific places. Layers of stored fat under the skin act
as an insulator and keep the body warm. A layer of fat is also present
around the vital organs of the body like the kidney and the heart. This
serves as a padding and protects them against injury.
4) Source of essential fatty acids: Fats serve as sources of essential fatty
acids which have important functions in our body.
5) Carrier of fat-soluble vitamins: You have read about a category of
micronutrients called vitamins. Some of the vitamins are soluble in fats
and are termed as fat-soluble vitamins. Fats serve as carriers of these
fat-soluble vitamins in the body and also aid in their absorption.
Digestion, absorption and utilisation: In the process of digestion fats are
broken down to their constituent components i.e. glycerol and fatty acids. The
two enzymes which aid in the digestion of fats are gastric lipase present in gastric
juice and pancreatic lipase poured into the small intestine from the pancreas. For
enzyme action, fats need to be dispersed or mixed in water. You know fats are
insoluble in water. A secretion from the liver called bile helps in fat digestion
by breaking fat into small droplets. These fat droplets are then dispersed in
the liquid digestive juice and are easily acted upon by enzymes. Since bile
is not present in the stomach, the action of gastric lipase is not very significant.
This is the reason why fats are chiefly digested in the small intestine where
pancreatic lipase breaks them into glycerol and fatty acids aided by the action
of bile.
45
Basic Concepts in Nutrition-I The end products of fat digestion i.e. glycerol and fatty acids present in the
intestine move into the intestinal cells. The fatty acids cannot enter intestinal
cells as such. Bile salts play an important role in fat absorption by dispersing
the fatty acids into small, tiny water-soluble units called micelles which can
easily move into the intestinal cells.
Fatty acids and glycerol then get transported from the intestinal cells to blood
circulation. They do not travel directly into the bloodstream but first enter the
network of vessels (present in the villi of the small intestine) called lymph vessels.
Then fatty acids from the lymph vessels enter the heart and from there move into
the blood. Blood then carries them either to the adipose tissues where they are
stored as concentrated sources of energy or to cells where they are broken down
to provide energy (in a similar fashion as glucose and amino acids).

Box 3.1 : Cholesterol

Cholesterol and its relationship to health and disease is a hot topic of

discussion. You would probably have encountered this term in conversation,
advertisements, newspaper columns, magazines and books. What is
cholesterol? Cholesterol is a fat-like substance present in foods. It is different
in structure from triglycerides i.e. fats and oils. Animal foods like milk, egg,
organ meats, ghee, butter, cream are all rich sources of cholesterol. Plant
foods like vegetable oils (mustard oil, groundnut oil, soya oil), nuts and
oilseeds do not contain cholesterol. Some manufacturers of vegetable oils try
to mislead the general public by making claims that their products do not
contain cholesterol. Now, as a student of nutrition, you know that this claim
has no basis. None of the vegetable oils contain cholesterol.

Cholesterol plays many important roles in the body:

a) It is the structural component of membranes of body cells.

b) The break down of cholesterol by the liver produces bile salts. Bile
salts are important for the digestion and absorption of fats and some
vitamins.

c) Cholesterol is also necessary for the synthesis of many hormones in the

body.

However, extra cholesterol over and above the body needs can be harmful.
You will learn more about this aspect in Block 5.

Check Your Progress Exercise 3

1) How are saturated fatty acids different from unsaturated fatty acids?
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46
2) Name the two essential fatty acids. The Macronutrients-II:
Proteins and Fats
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3) Fill in the blanks.

a) All fats and oils are made up of ........................ and ....................... .

b) Each gram of fat provides approximately ............................... Kcal.

c) The amount of energy supplied by a gram of fat is ...................... the

amount of energy supplied by a gram of carbohydrate or protein.

d) ............................ is essential for digestion and absorption of fats and

oils.

e) A molecule of fat has ........................ fatty acids and a molecule of

glycerol and is called a ..................

3.4 LET US SUM UP

The discussion in this unit is on two categories of macronutrients i.e. proteins and
fats. You have read that:

• Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins. Food and body proteins
contain 22 different amino acids. These 22 amino acids are classified into
two categories: essential and non-essential amino acids. The quality of food
proteins depends on the relative proportion of essential amino acids present
in them. As animal proteins generally contain enough of all the essential amino
acids needed by the body, they are considered superior in quality as compared
to plant proteins. The quality of plant proteins can be improved by combining
plant foods with other plant foods or animal foods e.g. cereal-pulse
combinations or cereal-milk combinations.

The end products of protein digestion in the body are amino acids which
after absorption are utilised for several functions in the body. The chief
function of proteins is growth and maintenance.
• Fatty acids are the chief constituents of all fats and oils. Fatty acids can be
saturated or unsaturated depending on the number of hydrogen atoms
present in the carbon chain. A molecule of triglyceride or fat is made
up of three fatty acids and one molecule of glycerol. During the process
of digestion triglycerides present in the food are broken down to their
constituent fatty acids and glycerol. The fatty acids released as a result
of digestion are concentrated sources of energy.
47
Basic Concepts in Nutrition-I
3.5 GLOSSARY
Essential amino acids : The amino acids which cannot be synthesised
in the body and hence have to be provided in
the diet.
Fatty acid : An organic compound composed of carbon
hydrogen and oxygen. In combination with
glycerol, fatty acids form fat.
Hormone : Secretions of some glands of the body which
travel through the blood to specific target organs
to exert their specific effects e.g. the hormone
insulin is secreted by a gland (pancreas) and
travels in blood to the target organ (i.e. muscle
and adipose tissue).
Haemoglobin : A protein-containing compound present in the
blood which helps to carry oxygen from the
lungs to the body tissues and carbon dioxide
from the body tissues to the lungs.
Non-essential amino acid : An amino acid which can be synthesised in the
body and hence does not have to be provided
in the diet.
Reserve : Reserve here refers to stores of various
nutrients in the body at specific sites.
Triglyceride : A molecule of fat which is made up of glycerol
and three fatty acids.

3.6 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR

PROGRESS EXERCISES
Check Your Progress Exercise 1
1) Cereals are lacking in one of the essential amino acids (lysine). Their protein
quality can be improved by combination with other foods which are rich in
lysine i.e. pulses or animal foods like milk, egg, meat.
2) Answer from your own experience.
Check Your Progress Exercise 2
1) a) Amino acids b) methionine, lysine c) proportion and amount d) Peptide.
2) a) True b) False. The major function of protein is body-building. c) False.
Some hormones are proteins. d) True c) True.
Check Your Progress Exercise 3
1) Saturated fatty acids contain all the hydrogen atoms which the carbon chains
can hold whereas in unsaturated fatty acids some of the hydrogen atoms are
missing from the carbon chain. The degree of unsaturation will vary according
to the number of missing hydrogen atoms. The two essential fatty acids
are also unsaturated in nature.
2) Linoleic acid and linolenic acid.
3) a) fatty acids and glycerol b) 9 c) double d) Bile e) three, triglyceride
48