Digestive Enzymes

Enzymes can be formed only from and in organic living matter. Where there are no enzymes, there is no life.

You are alive because enzymes make it possible. Enzymes are the foundation of energy and the life force in all living things. Without enzymes seeds would not sprout, fruit would not ripen, leaves would not change color, and you would not exist. Enzymes are responsible for building, detoxifying, and healing your body. They are the force that allows your body to digest and absorb food. Enzymes also regulate tens of thousands of other biochemical functions that take place every day in your body. These functions include breathing, growing, smelling, tasting, stimulating nerves, defending your body against disease, regulating hormones, and building organs, glands, and tissues. Even your thinking involves enzymes.

There are two sources of enzymes: endogenous, meaning those that originate within our body; and exogenous, meaning those we ingest that originate outside our body.

Undigested foods can eventually cause or aggravate any disease we can name. Beginning a program of enzyme supplementation can have a dramatic healing effect on those same diseases or health imbalances. Most diseases are promoted or even caused by a lack of enzymes.

The primary effect on blood resulting from a diet of cooked or otherwise processed, enzyme-less food is known as erythrocyte aggregation. This means the red blood cells clump in a formation, similar to a stack of coins in a shapeless mass. Imagine what this does for circulation, since the smallest blood vessels- the capillaries- have an inside diameter only large enough to allow the cells to go through single file. It’s simply fluid mechanics: This clumping puts great resistance on the heart, contributing to high blood pressure. Sluggish blood also impairs immune function by slowing down circulating white blood cells.

Enzyme supplements have two primary health promoting effects, which depend on when they are taken.

With A Meal
High quality food enzymes with meals ensure complete metabolism of fats, proteins, and carbohydrates ingested at that time. If a blockage exists somewhere in the digestive tract, the person will not be contributing further to the obstruction by packing down more indigestible foods. An enzyme program will contribute to unclogging the processed debris that have been accumulating in the stomach and intestines.

On An Empty Stomach
The second health promoting benefit of supplemental enzymes is seen in the blood. By taking enzymes between meals, on an empty stomach, the enzyme energy is absorbed into the bloodstream to go to work breaking down some of the long term food residues that have made their way into the circulation. This is known as blood detoxification. Once in the bloodstream, these natural food enzymes can undo some of the damage caused by months or years of eating a diet high in processed or other enzyme-less foods.

The most serious threat to the body’s supply of endogenous enzymes is the habit of eating cooked and processed foods. Cooking or processing food over 118 degrees completely destroys the enzymes in the food. You will not find enzymes in foods that are in a box, bottle or can. Cooking also contributes to nutrient loss. Pasteurization, sterilization, radiation, freezing and microwaving either render food enzymes inactive or alter their structure. Of all the creatures on earth, human beings and their domesticated pets are the only ones that try to live without food enzymes in their diets.

Stress, strenuous exercise, pregnancy, frequent colds, exposure to extreme temperatures and fevers all require tremendous enzyme activity. Fried foods, caffeine, alcohol, drugs, tobacco, and other stimulants also cause immense quantities of metabolic enzymes to be produced and generate cell-damaging substances called free radicals.

Early signs of Enzyme Deficiency:
Digestive complaints like heartburn, gas, bloating and belching are signs of an enzyme deficiency. Other symptoms may include headaches, stomach aches, diarrhea, constipation, chronic fatigue, yeast infections, and nutritional deficiencies. Because these symptoms are so prevalent many people consider them to be normal. However, they are an indication that the body cannot process the food eaten. Digestive problems concern the stomach, intestines, colon, liver, pancreas, and gall bladder. Autopsies have shown that everyone who eats primarily cooked foods will have a dangerously enlarged and poorly functioning pancreas, often on the verge of breakdown.

Enzymes and fiber are essential for proper digestion and elimination. A major benefit of fiber is that it binds acids to bile and carries the bile along with excess fats out of the body. Fiber helps to lower cholesterol, reduce the risk of heart disease, lower blood pressure, improve blood sugar, and promote the growth of friendly intestinal flora. It also promotes bowel regularity, aids in digestion, and helps to keep the bowel clean. Fiber cannot do its job effectively unless enzymes do theirs. Over time, hard to digest high-protein foods (such as cooked meat and other enzyme deficient foods) exhaust the digestive organs until they can no longer function efficiently. This results in the accumulation of partially digested food in the bowel. By middle age many people have as much as 20 pounds of undigested, putrefactive food in their colon. Toxins produced from this putrefactive buildup are reabsorbed into the bloodstream, creating autointoxication, or self poisoning. This results in a dramatically weakened immune system and can lead to serious debilitating health problems including colon cancer.

When cooked foods are eaten, the body reacts just as though we had an acute illness. Within 30 minutes of eating cooked foods, our white-blood cell count increases dramatically. This means that the immune system is being unnecessarily called into action virtually every time we eat. What about refined sugar? Unprocessed, raw sugar cane contains enzymes, chromium and B vitamins and is easily digested and assimilated. In order for the body to metabolize processed, refined sugar, the missing vitamins and chromium must be stolen from the body’s own tissue reserves. If large quantities of refined sugar are eaten, then not only are the body’s enzymes depleted, but we suffer B vitamin and chromium deficiencies. Chromium is an essential mineral needed by the body to support efficient insulin function. Insulin regulates the metabolism of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. Studies show a relationship between obesity and chromium deficiencies. B vitamins are considered coenzymes essential to the metabolism of all cells. We also need water in the intestinal tract to activate enzymes. This water should be pure and should not contain chlorine or fluoride.

Enzyme deficiency can lead to obesity, osteoporosis, Candida overgrowth, allergies, all types of dis-ease up to and including, cancer and death. By providing your body with an abundance of live foods and enzyme supplements, you maybe able to reverse many ills and significantly increase your potential for staying healthy, experiencing more vitality, and living a longer and more enjoyable life.

Not all digestive enzymes are created equal.

There are hundreds of enzymes on the market but most are useless due to the manufacturing process. The machines get so hot during the mass production they kill all of the enzymes they are creating thus wasting your hard earned money. There are only two that I know of that have been shown to work on a live blood analysis. They are:

1. Digest A meal from EcoQuest/Infinity 2 Nutrition

2. LifeZyme Plus from The Right Solution.