Amy Wilkinson
- In what ways do lipids differ from carbohydrates?
Lipids are a group of substances, which include fats, oils and waxes. Carbohydrates include sugars, starches, glycogen and cellulose. They are stored in plants as starches and in animals as glycogen.
There are many differences between carbohydrates and lipids. For example lipids are insoluble in water whereas carbohydrates are soluble in water. This is because lipids contain non – polar hydrocarbon units whereas water contains polar hydrocarbon units. So when the two are mixed together there is no attraction between particles so no breakdown is possible. But lipids care soluble in non - polar solvents, e.g. alcohol. Carbohydrates have polar hydroxyl groups, so there are able to break down in water.