Digestion- an unconscious bodily process most of us take for granted; we don’t worry that when we eat our food is not in the form it needs to be in order to be absorbed and provide nutrients. We simply chew and swallow and let our bodies do the rest. It sounds simple enough and something that those without digestive problems do with ease; however, this is not the case for the majority of Americans. Digestive problems are affecting more and more people each day and the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearing House (NDDIC) reports that 60-70 million people are affected by digestive diseases at costs of greater than $142 billion dollars.

Digestion is the process our food and drinks go through to be broken down and assimilated so they can be utilized by the body for nourishment and building of cells and energy. The primary forces behind the digestion process are Digestive Enzymes. Digestive Enzymes are secreted along the digestive track to breakdown food into nutrients and wastes. Without digestive enzymes digestion would not occur and could lead to malabsorption and poor nutrition, despite what you may be consuming. Poorly digested proteins putrefy, carbohydrates ferment and fats turn rancid.

Why would we need to supplement digestive enzymes if our body produces them?

Many factors affect our ability to properly digest and absorb our food; such as, a fast paced lifestyle of eating on the run (making poor food choices) and aging. As we age it is common for our digestive abilities to naturally decrease due to lower production of digestive enzymes, thus causing great stress on our digestive system and functions. As our body creates less digestive enzymes nutrient absorption is compromised and can lead to greater health challenges. Also how we prepare our food determines the amount of enzymes we consume; cooked, microwaved or processed food are virtually void of digestive enzymes. Food enzymes are introduced into the body through raw food only and unfortunately the typical Western diet does not include enough raw fruits and vegetables. The only other way to consume digestive enzymes is through supplementation.

Supplemental enzymes are useful because some of us may be producing little of some enzymes, while other enzymes; like cellulase and phytase which break down fruit and vegetable fibers are not produced by the body, yet are required through dietary intake. Though we are born with the ability to manufacture our own enzymes, as we lose that capability supplementation can aid the digestive system by providing necessary enzymes to support optimal digestive system function and ensure nutrients are absorbed.

What kind of digestive enzymes should I take?

Different enzymes are specific for different types of food. The most common enzymes utilized for digestion are: proteases to break down protein (bromelain) which has been shown to help with diarrhea and heartburn, amylase which breaks down carbohydrates so they can be utilized by the body, cellulase is used to break down fruit and vegetable fibers to help avoid excessive fermentation that can cause gas, abdominal bloating and discomfort and lactase which breaks down lactose (milk sugar) and is often taken by those who are lactose intolerant. Most commonly digestive enzymes are found in combination for overall digestive support.

For more information on the different types of digestive enzymes go our List of Digestive Enzymes and Enzyme Supplementation Benefits.

Digest well….naturally!!