How are carbs turned into energy?

Answer 1

The simplest answer would be that the carbohydrates are first broken down to glucose and other sugars, which are then converted to glucose by various mechanisms.

Glucose enters the cell through certain transporters and its metabolized in 3 main stages:

* Glycolysis is the first stage, where glucose is converted through a series of reactions to finally produce pyruvate, NADH, and ATP molecules (ATP is the energy currency of the body). * Pyruvate then enters the Kreb's cycle, where it is the central hub of metabolism within the cell, where more NADH molecules are produced along with FADH molecules (NADH and FADH2 are proton and electron carriers). * All the produced NADH and FADH2 molecules then move to the last stage, which is the oxidative phosphorylation stage, where the electrons they carry are transferred to molecular oxygen through a series of protein complexes, which lead to the generation of more molecules of ATP, which is "energy".

Answer 2

Carbohydrates are broken down into glucose during digestion. The glucose is then absorbed into the bloodstream and transported to cells throughout the body. In the cells, glucose is converted into energy through a series of chemical reactions in a process called cellular respiration.