Your body can’t produce all of them.

Of the 20 total amino acids, there are nine your body can’t make on its own.”These amino acids must come from food sources,” says Amy Gorin, R.D. “Without them, the body’s cells would use their own proteins to get those missing amino acids. Eventually, this would lead to degradation of the muscles and organs.” Translation: No bueno for your body.In case you’re curious, the nine essential amino acids are: histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, and valine. Your body needs each of these in different amounts to build muscle, break down food (i.e., digest it), repair tissue, and many other functions. For example, tryptophan (which gets a false bad rap for making you sleepy after Thanksgiving dinner) helps your body make serotonin, a chemical that’s sometimes referred to as a mood-regulating hormone.

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