Amino Acids
Did you know that there are 9 essential amino acids?
These are amino acids that have to be taken in the form of food in the diet as the body cannot make them. You need to eat foods which contain these amino acids every single day!
The Nine Essential Amino Acids
There are also a number of non-essential amino acids, which the body does not require in the form of intake through the diet, as they can be manufactured from the essential amino acids.
The Non-Essential Amino Acids
- Alanine
- Arginine^
- Aspartic Acid
- Carnitine
- Carnosine*
- Cysteine^
- GABA
- Glutamic acid
- Glutamine^
- Glutathione
- Glycine^
- Ornithine
- Proline^
- Serine
- Taurine^
- Tyrosine^
* Carnosine is not officially an amino acid, but it has a similar structure to amino acids, so it will be described with the other amino acids.
^ These are known as conditionally essential amino acids, which are the non-essential amino acids that become essential under special circumstances.
