Cold sores - painful sores on the lips and around the mouth, caused by a virus. Canker sores - painful sores in the mouth, caused by bacteria or viruses. Thrush - a yeast infection that causes white patches in your mouth. Leukoplakia - white patches of excess cell growth on the cheeks, gums or tongue, common in smokers.
Metabolism is a combination of chemical reactions that are spontaneous and release energy and chemical reactions that are non-spontaneous and require energy in order to proceed. Living organisms must take in energy via food, nutrients, or sunlight in order to carry out cellular processes.
We all need energy to survive. Whether we are plants, animals, or bacteria, we all need energy. Energy doesn't just float around in a form we can use to survive. We need to eat (mainly sugars) and digest food. That process of chemical digestion and its related reactions is called metabolism. Metabolism is the total of all the chemical reactions an organism needs to survive.