Catabolism
Catabolism is a kind of metabolism. It happens when food is digested and the molecules break down in the body for use as energy. It is the opposite of anabolic metabolism. An example of anabolism is gluconeogenesis, which is the body building molecules (carbohydrates, muscle) up.
Large, complex molecules in the body are broken down into smaller, simple ones. An example of catabolism is glycolysis.
It is also the process of breaking the chemical bonds among the atoms of macromolecules to extract the chemical energy that is stored in them, such as releasing the energy that results from the glucose oxidation (during cellular respiration process).
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