Functions

All of these organic macromolecules have at least two types, and deal with energy. Carbohydrates give our body energy, Lipids store energy, proteins use energy to create and control crucial chemical reactions in our bodies, and Nucleic acids form DNA or RNA which tells the cells what to do with the energy being dealt with by these other molecules.

Carbohydrates, or carbs, divide into sugars: monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides. Our bodies break these down in order to get energy. This makes carbs important, however, if we eat to much of them our bodies aren't able to process the energy fast enough and stores the energy for later use. Carbohydrates are also non-polar so they do not dissolve in water.

The lipids store energy for us. Lipids divide into fats, phospholipids, and steroids. They form small units instead of chains to make up the bigger molecules and make up energy storage and hormones. Phospholipids are interesting in that their fatty tails are hydrophobic while they have hydrophilic heads that love water.

Nucleic acids make up RNA and DNA which give our cells instructions as to what to do with the energy and when or where to do it.

Proteins help with many functions such as cell communication, structure, and enzymes. The biggest sub-group is enzymes, which help us with the crucial chemical reactions in our bodies.