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An energy bar is a dietary supplement often consumed by athletes or other physically active people to maintain their caloric needs in light of their strenuous physical activity. A prescribed dietary supplement is intended to supply nutrients (vitamins, minerals, fatty acids or amino acids) that are missing or not consumed in sufficient quantity in a persons diet. ...
Look up Athlete in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
As the name indicates, they are mainly a source of food energy, primarily complex carbohydrates. Some bars contain a source of protein (often soy), plus a selection of vitamins and minerals. The flavours added to the ingredients often have them resemble baked goods, such as cookies or muffins, to make them more appealing. Carbohydrates (literally hydrates of carbon) are chemical compounds that act as the primary biological means of storing or consuming energy, other forms being fat and protein. ...
A representation of the 3D structure of myoglobin, showing coloured alpha helices. ...
Binomial name Glycine max Soybeans (US) or soya beans (UK) (Glycine max) are a high-protein legume (Family Fabaceae) grown as food for both humans and livestock. ...
Vitamins are organic chemicals that a given living organism requires in trace quantities for good health, but which the organism cannot synthesize, and therefore must obtain from its diet. ...
Dietary minerals are the chemical elements required by living organisms, other than the four elements Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, and Oxygen which are ubiquitous in organic molecules. ...
A chocolate chip cookie In the United States and Canada, a cookie (sometimes spelled cooky) is a small, flat baked pastry. ...
Muffin is the name given to two types of breadstuffs. ...
The packaging of a typical bar will have a precise nutritional breakdown in order to assist the athlete in maintaining a dietary regimen. Major brand names in North America include the Balance Bar, HOOAH! Bar, PowerBar, and Clif Bar. One can also choose to make his or her own fresh energy bars using an online recipe or a baking mix such as Matisse & Jack's Homemade Energy Bar Mix. Balance Bar Logo Balance Bar is the brand name of a popular nutritional energy bar based upon the 40/30/30 principle, a nutritional philosophy popularized by Dr. Barry Sears that has been proven to provide sustained energy and hunger management. ...
The Hooah! bar is an energy bar created by the United States military. ...
PowerBar is an American maker of energy bars and related products (particularly sports drinks and gel-based footstuffs for distance athletes). ...
A Clif Bar is a type of energy bar that was created in 1992 by Gary Erickson, the owner of Clif Bar & Company, and named after his father Clifford. ...
Matisse & Jacks is a San Francisco-based natural foods company which produces a bake-at-home energy bar mix called TrailBlaze. ...
Distinction between Energy Bars and Energy Drinks The descriptor "energy" in the context of an energy bar does not suggest a product offering a burst of intense energy followed by a crash, as offered by many energy drinks. Energy drinks are not intended as a replacement for a full meal, whereas the point of an energy bar is that the massive concentration of carbohydrates gives the body the actual fuel it needs to continue functioning. Many energy drinks are offered in "diet" versions with no carbohydrates as their main mechanism of action is metabolic stimulation through B-complex vitamins and CNS stimulation through caffeine and in some cases more exotic "uppers" such as the yohimbine in Redline or ephedra in Stacker 2. The analogy can be made that energy drinks allow the body to burn fuel faster and hotter than ordinarily possible, but once the fuel is burned up, the body effectively "runs out of gas" by crashing. Energy bars provide a massive amount of fuel for the body but do not induce metabolic stimulation to aid in the processing of that fuel. Energy drinks are beverages which contain legal stimulants, vitamins, and minerals, including caffeine, guarana, taurine, various forms of ginseng, maltodextrin, carnitine, creatine, and ginkgo biloba. ...
Vitamin B is a complex of several vitamins. ...
Caffeine is a xanthine alkaloid compound that acts as a stimulant in humans. ...
Yohimbine, also known under the outdated names quebrachin, aphrodin, corynine, yohimvetol, and hydroergotocin, is the principal alkaloid of the bark of the West-African tree Pausinystalia yohimbe Pierre (formerly Corynanthe yohimbe), family Rubiaceae (Madder family). ...
The tachometer, right, shows red lines above 5700 RPM. Redline refers to the maximum engine speed at which an internal combustion engine and its components are designed to operate without causing damage to the components themselves or other parts of the engine. ...
Species of Ephedra have traditionally been used by indigenous people for a variety of medicinal purposes, and are a likely candidate for the Soma plant of Indo-Iranian religion. ...
Stacker 2 is a herbal enhancement pill that claims to help lose weight. ...
Nutrition Facts of energy bars The definition of energy has a few different meanings depending on the field a person is in. In the biological and scientific field, the units of measure for energy are called calories. Specifically, a calorie is the heat needed to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 degrees Celsius (Soloman 35). In terms of food, calories come from 3 mains sources: fat, protein, and carbohydrates. In one gram of fat, there’s nine calories; in one gram of protein, there’s four calories; and in one gram of carbohydrates, there’s also four calories. Carbohydrates are one of the key ingredients in energy bars. There are essentially two types of carbohydrates: simple and complex. The difference between in the two is in the amount of sugar per gram that each carbohydrate can hold. Simple carbohydrates are harder to break down and often get stored as fat. Examples of simple carbohydrates are sucrose syrup, high fructose corn syrup, and sugar. Complex carbohydrates are good for you, to an extent. They are found in rice, potatoes, whole grain foods, and other fruits and vegetables. Carbohydrates are the body’s best source for energy, which is why many energy bars contain high amounts of carbohydrates (Soloman 1001). Carbohydrates are much better sources of energy compared to fat and protein. Simple carbohydrates containing glucose can be infused into the bloodstream almost instantly, without having to digest them. They will cause a sharp increase in blood sugar, which will give the body an energy boost for a while, but after the effects wear off, there will be a sharp decline in energy (Glycemic Index Carbohydrates). Therefore, energy bars with high amounts of sugar can cause more harm than help in a sporting event. Complex carbohydrates, such as starch, cause a steadier increase in blood sugar level. The increase in blood sugar will last longer than simple carbohydrates, since complex carbohydrates take longer to digest. The decline in energy is also not as rapid, making complex carbohydrates ideal for people who need to sustain their energy for long amounts of time (Glycemic Index Carbohydrates). Fiber is a very interesting and helpful carbohydrate. It is the indigestible parts of a plant cell (Atkins 77). Since it’s indigestible, it does not raise the blood sugar level. In fact, it slows it down, making digestion slower and a person feeling full longer. Fiber also can reduce cholesterol and remove harmful bacteria from one’s colon. It is also used to relieve constipation in the form of pills. Most fruits and vegetables are high in fiber, and many companies have started using it in energy bars to give consumers the feeling of satiety. Sugar alcohol is another interesting innovation that has impacted the food industry. The substance maltitol is an artificial sweetener used to take the place of sugar. It doesn’t have the same effect that sugar has though, and dissolves into the bloodstream more easily, so it wont be stored as fat. Some companies claim that sugar alcohol is a good type of carbohydrate, and they use it in place of normal sugar to decrease the amount of net carbohydrates gained. Many people will often over indulge in carbohydrates, which can cause problems and weight gain. When too many carbohydrates are eaten, the liver will fill up with glycogen and still have glucose entering it. The liver will then store the excess glucose as fat, for later use. This is one reason why energy bars are meant for athletes and people with active life styles. There are exceptions, but they were originally designed for athletes.
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