Characteristics and properties of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are the main repository of photosynthetic energy in plants. They constitute roughly 50-80% of the dry matter of forages and cereals.

In living organism, they function as structural materials, energy reservesn, adhesives and information-transfer agents. Carbohydrate polymers derive from natur’s capacity to covert carbohydrate molecules into polyacetals by several pathways.

Polysaccharides–polysaccharides interaction plays an important role in the control of architecture of animal and plants cells.

The most important functional properties of food polysaccharides are water binding capacity and enhancing viscosity. As polysaccharides can dramatically increasing the solution viscosity at a relatively low concentration, they are often used as a viscofier in liquid and semisolid foods.

They are also used to stabilize food products such as emulsion, foam and frozen dairy products. The nutritive characteristics of carbohydrates depend on their sugar components and linkages with polyphenolic lignin and their physicochemical factors.

The most prominent character of carbohydrate metabolism is hyperglycemia which is speculated to be related it insulin resistance, due to counter regulatory hormones and mediators of inflammation; insulin resistance itself, however, does not explain this increase in glucose levels.
Characteristics and properties of carbohydrate