Natural Amino Acid Supplements vs Those Manufactured Artificially - Essay Example

Name: Tutor: Title: Process Analysis Course: Date: Process Analysis Introduction Since the times of written history, according to the Darwin Theory, man has evolved over time. From his walking style, to his eating style, his clothing and even the way he interacted with the social environment has changed over time. This is as a means to live on in spite of the prevailing environmental conditions. Without this means to adapt, man could not possibly be where he is today. After doing research, I have realised that human beings have over time been developing more and more food supplements to boost their diet which is a means of evolution. All kinds of food supplements have been developed by companies involved in boosting human health through the manufacturing of nutrient supplements. From this research and understanding, these nutrient supplements have been very fundamental in boosting the health of individuals who are malnourished, deficient of certain nutrients in the body, expectant women who are deficient of certain nutrients during their gestation period or even as a health boosters. In this essay, production and the means to develop cheaper means of obtaining and manufacturing food supplements is discussed, in particular protein supplements. Going back to history, Lawson (2003) noted the various terms developed by Darwin in his evolution theory. These terms include “natural selection” and “survival of the fittest.” From these terms, I would categorise the development of food supplements as a means of survival developed by man to survive in the ever changing environmental conditions. Human beings developed various ways to obtain food as documented by Darwin through various stages that included fruit gathering, root gathering fishing and hunting. During these times they were adapted in a way that they could perform these activities of obtaining food and the nutrients they required. Over time they evolved and developed fire which helped them cook the foods they obtained so as to better obtain nutrients by softening the foods first through cooking. They then began domesticating plants and animals that were a source of very important nutrients that they needed to survive. Nature applied the natural selection rule by favouring those that were better adapted to survive in the environment at the expense of those that were not. That short insight into human beings’ adaptation according to evolution shows the importance of getting the best means to obtain nutrients from our diets which is to boost our immune system and increase our chances of survival. Food supplements play the above role quite rather well. They are defined by the US Congress as a manufactured thing that is taken by oral means and has specific ingredients that are found in diets, its purpose is to add-on the diet. These ingredients include amino acids which is what shall be discussed about in particular. Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins in particular. There are several amino acids which are all classified as essential and non-essential amino acids. Some the human body can manufacture on its own while some must be taken in our diets. Amino acids when taken as food supplements are very important in boosting health. Various health studies have condemned various foods that are a source of proteins that the body requires to be taken in the diet. These foods include animal meat such as beef and eggs. They have stated that taking these foods increases the risk of chronic diseases such as cancer; they also increase the risk of heart diseases due to the bad cholesterol in them which if consumed in large amounts is a risk factor. Considering these points, it is necessary to come up with a cheaper means to obtain amino acids and taking them without the risks of increasing chances of developing certain life ending diseases. This is a society health problem that involves and targets all persons regardless of their age (Caballero 2009). Incubation Process From the knowledge obtained as a result of the idea in mind. The time to allow the mind to process and mull over this information and knowledge in the subconscious state was very important. It is in this period that insights about the idea at hand developed. At the very best, time spent alone doing things considered as lazy was the best time in which the subconscious mind was at its best processing the information. Walking is an activity regarded as not involving but one which allows a person to feel free and with him or herself away from the pressures of life. When one walks around or for a certain length of distance experiencing nature’s goodness at its maximum, the subconscious mind is at its very best in mulling over information that one had gathered. This is what happened in my case. Everyday walking along the beach next to the house enabled this mulling over. This walking would take several hours of my time in the morning before breakfast and in the evening. In the process of the time spent walking, some of the time would be spent sitting on the sand and watching the waves come and go while listening to the sounds that came and went with them. The breeze that accompanied these waves had a revitalising effect on the brain that seemed to last long after the walk was over. These time that allowed the feeling and comprehension of the cool breeze was a fundamental part of the walk as was the sitting time and walking from and back to the house. The Idea Generation As a result of letting the subconscious mind do its work appropriately, the generation of the idea was made possible. This could be done using different techniques that would help realise the idea. The techniques used included brainstorming and synectics. In brainstorming technique, a group was used in which there was a leader to coordinate the brainstorming sessions and a person to write down the suggestions that were suggested. Through these sessions, it was suggested that the amino acids could be obtained from animal fur like that of cows, sheep and goats. This is because fur is made up of amino acids. This was said to be a cheap source. It was also suggested that hair is a good source of amino acids, so approaching shaving parlours and salons to buy shaved hair from them would be another source of hair from which amino acids could be processed. Amino acids have different properties, some are basic, acidic and others react differently in certain conditions. By taking advantage of these properties, it was suggested that amino acids could be obtained from the hair and fur and through chemical processes manufactured into supplements that could be taken orally. Also it was suggested that they could also be obtained from meat especially that of animals such as fish and chicken. By approaching established companies involved in manufacture of supplements, the obtaining and processing of these amino acids into forms that would be taken orally would be achieved. The challenge would be to convince people that these supplements are safe for consumption and that they are from natural sources. Also convincing people to sell their own hair as a source of amino acids is rather odd (Runco & Pritzker 1999). Evaluation and Implementation The above idea is a good one in that it is very unique. Currently in the market there is no amino acid supplements that are obtained naturally but those in the market are manufactured artificially. Artificial products may or may not have side effects but in this case supplements from a natural source are advantageous in that the only hurdle is obtaining them from their source, in this case hair, fur, and meat and packaging them in the right quality and quantity as required by health regulations. The idea on vegetable juice is brilliant as it can easily achieved. This is because it involves processing juice out of them. Juice is a product that has a good reception in the market. Especially when it is known to be naturally obtained it appeals to the people quite well. These two ideas were assessed on the ease to obtain the source materials. How easy is it to obtain vegetables? How easy is it to obtain fur, hair or meat? How cheap is it to process juice out of vegetables? How cheap is it to process amino acids out of hair, fur or meat? It was much easier to obtain vegetables and to process vegetable juice out of them. Thus we opted for the vegetable idea. This idea was refined by adding ideas of adding natural sweeteners that flavour it up so that it would not have a taste that was not appealing to customers. Also, it would be released to the market in different types according to the vegetable type from which it was obtained. It would also be branded as people are more receptive to a brand rather than a by the way product. The vegetable juice would also be packed in various types of cans and bottles with features that were enticing. This product was an invention as there is no juice types in the market sourced from vegetables. A challenge that would be encountered in this phase is that of coming up with the various types of cans and bottles. This would be solved by approaching a plant that designs them and partnering with them to come up with the designs. Bibliography Caballero, B. (2009) Guide to Nutritional Supplements. Academic Press. Lawson, K. (2003) Darwin and Evolution for Kids: His Life and Ideas with 21 Activities. Chicago Review Press. Runco, MA. & Pritzker, SR. (Eds.). (1999) Encyclopedia of Creativity, Volume 1. Academic Press. Read More