Lipids are molecules that can be extracted from plants and animals using nonpolar solvents such as ether, chloroform and acetone.
Lipids were discovered in 1854 when Berthlot M combined glycerol with fatty acids
You have many different types of lipids in your body including fats, oils, waxes and steroids.
Your body uses fats as a supply and store of energy: a gram of fat contains more than double the amount of energy present in a gram of carbohydrate. The steroids in your body include some hormones. Other lipids make up the outer layer of all your cells, and the fatty sheaths that insulate nerve fibres.