Fatty acids are the building blocks of fat in human body and in the food we eat. They exist as three main classes of esters- triglycerides, phospholipids, and cholesteryl esters. During digestion, fats are broken down into fatty acids in which form they are absorbed into the blood. They are esterified and stored in fat cells. Free fatty acids (FFA) in blood are always bound to a transport protein such as albumin. Fatty acids can be metabolized to yield energy and they also form structural components of cells. The majority of fat in our diet is made up of long-chain fatty acids, which contain 13–21 carbon atoms.
Short-chain fatty acids have fewer than 6 carbon atoms. The medium-chain fatty acids in Medium Chain Triglycerides (MCTs) have 6–12 carbon atoms. 4 types of medium chain fatty acids are known. They are: I. C6: caproic acid or hexanoic acid, II. C8: caprylic acid or octanoic…
