Thread: Lactic Acid Consumption

I was reading the ingreedient on the back of a butter-substitute that we have in our house. That last ingredient on the list was 'lactic Acid'

I understand that lactic acid is what your cells produce during anaerobic respiration. Lactic acid has the chemical formula of

C.3 H.6 O.3 [H.6 means that there are 6 Hydrogen molecules]

Glucose has the chemical formula of

C.6 H.12 O.6

Does this mean that your body will make glucose of the lactic acid? Is it justa cunning way of the butter-substitute company not telling you that you are putting suger on your toast?

Also... will consuming large amounts of lacitc acid cause any health problems? Because I understand that lactic acid is what your cells produce when respiring anaerobically, and it is what makes your muscles hurt so that you stop the excersize, and therefore do not have to respire anaerobically.

Hello,

Lactate -which is the deprotonated form of lactic acid - can be converted into glucose by the liver in the Cori cycle – through the process of gluconeogenesis. The reason that lactic acid is in the form of lactate in the body is because the body’s natural PH is 7.5 therefore lactic acid which has a pka of approximately 5 would be deprotontaed in the body. So while researching this topic anywhere you see lactate you can just assume lactic acid invivo… 
Hope this helps…

Thanks! That was practically what I was lokoing for. So there is no side effects of consuming lactic acid? How does Lactate make yor muscles sore?

Hello,
I’m not a doctor – but from what I’ve learned there should be no side effects from consuming lactic acid unless you have another underlying health condition.

The reason that your muscles feel soar after strenuous exercise is due to the fact that lactate production will increase faster than your tissue can remove it so the lactate concentration will begin to rise. Some researchers have suggested that lactate is the cause of acidosis or DOMS – delayed onset muscle soreness – but to date nothing pertaining to that has been poven…

It is difficult for lactate to cause acidosis because it cannot be protonated invivo… and therefore converted into lactic acid… furthermore there aren’t enough protons sources present in the glycolytic pathway to produce any acidic species including lactic acid - looking at the pka(s) of the common metabolites (chemicals resulting from a biological pathway) formed in the body and relating that to PH with the Henderson Hasslebalch equation will provide the reasons for why this is true if you’re interested in checking. : ) -

Acidosis is caused when the buffering systems of the tissues are overcome. Hydrogen ions released in the formation of ATP result in the lowering of the overall PH.. During strenuous exercise aerobic metabolism cannot produce ATP at a sufficient rate to supply the muscles so anaerobic metabolism becomes the primary pathway for energy production because it can provide ATP more efficiently during exercise. Therefore it is the higher amounts of ATP getting made and then hydrolyzed that results in the acidosis…

At present the effect of lactate on acidosis is still under debate… but lactate is also not likely the cause of DOMS as it typically takes your body 30 to 60 minutes to process lactate and DOMS typically begins about 24 to 48 hours after strenuous exercise…

Hope this helps. : )

I would also point out that lactic acid is what gives yoghurt its taste.