Re:When somebody loses weight, where does the fat go?
by arikrak on Monday November 27, 2017 @12:31PM
(#15789123)
Meanwhile the reverse happens when a tree builds itself by pulling out carbon from the co2 in the air
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Re:When somebody loses weight, where does the fat go?
by SAI_Peregrinus on Monday November 27, 2017 @12:45PM
(#15789246)
Trees (and other plants) are almost entirely air and water. Very little soil gets incorporated, and almost all of that is trace minerals dissolved in the water.
Re:When somebody loses weight, where does the fat go?
by loco5niner on Monday November 27, 2017 @07:30PM
(#15793165)
Curious. I've heard this about trees. What about tomatoes? Cucumbers? etc? Or is this comment only referring to the "substance" of a plant and not its fruit(or similar)?
Re:When somebody loses weight, where does the fat go?
by SAI_Peregrinus on Sunday December 03, 2017 @12:31AM
(#15836115)
It applies to fruit and similar. All the sugar and other carbohydrates are air+water primarily. There's a bit of nitrogen from the soil, and everything else is extremely small trace elements. Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, Nitrogen (CHON) are the four most common elements in all Earth life. Plants get the hydrogen and oxygen from water, and carbon (and more oxygen) from CO2 in the air. Cellulose is CHO only. Same for glucose, fructose, etc. Nitrogen is mostly found in the proteins, with a bit in DNA, RNA, and ATP. Humans are about 3% nitrogen by mass, plants are a bit less (lower protein concentration).