Amino acids are organic compounds that combine to form proteins. Amino acids and proteins are the building blocks of life.
When proteins are digested or broken down, amino acids are left. The human body uses amino acids to make proteins to help the body:
Amino acids are classified into three groups:
Essential amino acids cannot be made by the body. As a result, they must come from food. The 9 essential amino acids are: histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, and valine.
Nonessential means that our bodies produce an amino acid, even if we do not get it from the food we eat.Nonessential amino acids include: alanine, asparagine, aspartic acid, and glutamic acid.
Conditional amino acids are usually not essential, except in times of illness and stress. Conditional amino acids include: arginine, cysteine, glutamine, tyrosine, glycine, ornithine, proline, and serine.