The Krebs cycle simplified: the major source of energy in all living organisms. This is a cycle of processes that produce energy from carbohydrates, proteins and fats at the cellular level. For a more detailed explanation of the Krebs cycle see the bottom of the article.
Some times I need things simplified or I would never find time to write articles. Although this article is titled The Krebs cycle simplified it is actually about “functional medicine”. When I was first learning about functional medicine I heard a reference to the Krebs cycle. I realized that this was something I did not understand yet. I then spent the next hour learning about it. After I recovered my focus and returned back to the subject I was researching I thought to my self I should have just Googled “Krebs Cycle Simplified”.
Functional medicine is personalized medicine that deals with primary prevention and underlying causes instead of symptoms for serious chronic disease. It is a science-based field of health care that is grounded in the following principles:
- Biochemical individuality describes the importance of individual variations in metabolic function that derive from genetic and environmental differences among individuals.
- Patient-centered medicine emphasizes “patient care” rather than “disease care,” following Sir William Osler’s admonition that “It is more important to know what patient has the disease than to know what disease the patient has.”
- Dynamic balance of internal and external factors.
- Web-like interconnections of physiological factors – an abundance of research now supports the view that the human body functions as an orchestrated network of interconnected systems, rather than individual systems functioning autonomously and without effect on each other. For example, we now know that immunological dysfunctions can promote cardiovascular disease, that dietary imbalances can cause hormonal disturbances, and that environmental exposures can precipitate neurological syndromes such as Parkinson’s disease.
- Health as a positive vitality – not merely the absence of disease.
- Promotion of organ reserve as the means to enhance health span.
Imbalances in the human body are the precursors to the symptoms that warn us of disease. Commonly we use these symptoms to label the diseases that they come with. Improving balance – in the patient’s environmental inputs and in the body’s fundamental physiological processes – is the precursor to restoring health and it involves much more than treating the symptoms.
This is an amazing approach to holistic medicine. What better way to treat a patient then focusing on that individual patient. I like to call this personalized medicine. All of the alternative medicine that we right about have holistic method. Most of these have been around for many years. This causes some doubt, especially when it contradicts what the “modern” medicine doctors are telling us. Mark Hyman, M.D. comes from the same place as those doctors that would rather write a script than analyses your internal processes. With Dr. Hyman’s credentials and the modern scientific background of functional medicine one can feel comfortable.
If reading The Krebs cycle simplified barely quench your thirst for knowledge then here is a more in depth look that I found on wisegeek.com. The Krebs cycle refers to a complex series of chemical reactions in all cells that utilize oxygen as part of their respiration process. This includes those cells of creatures from the higher animal kingdom, such as humans. The Krebs cycle produces carbon dioxide and a compound rich in energy, Adenosine triphosphate (ATP). This chemical provides cells with the energy required for the synthesis of proteins from amino acids and the replication of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA).
The Krebs cycle, also known as the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA), was first recognized in 1937 by the man for whom it is named, German biochemist Hans Adolph Krebs. His highly detailed and extensive research in the field of cellular metabolism and other scientific endeavors gleaned him the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1953. In short, the Krebs cycle constitutes the discovery of the major source of energy in all living organisms.
Within the Krebs cycle, energy in the form of ATP is usually derived from the breakdown of glucose, although fats and proteins can also be utilized as energy sources. Since glucose can pass through cell membranes, it transports energy from one part of the body to another. The Krebs cycle affects all types of life and is, as such, the metabolic pathway within the cells. This pathway chemically converts carbohydrates, fats, and proteins into carbon dioxide, and converts water into serviceable energy.