There have been saying that if we consume the best foods or take the most well balanced nutritional health supplement, we will enjoy optimal health; however, that is with a condition, i.e. provided we can digest and absorb well. With this, it means it is not only what we eat that counts but what we can absorb is equally important!
Organs of the digestive system
With that statement, it shows that “you are what you eat,” only paints part of the nutritional picture. For nutrition to occur from the food we eat, efficient digestion is the key in order for our body to use the nutrients to build, and to maintain health at the cellular level. For that to happen, we need plentiful amounts of enzymes. Curius to know what is enzyme? It is a molecule that helps speed up chemical reactions in all living things. Can you imagine if without enzymes, those chemical reactions would either occur too slowly or not at all — could not breath, see, move or digest food, hence no life would be possible!
You and I have thousands of kinds of enzymes in our body and each of them does one specific job for us! Take amylase for example, which is found in the saliva, is the enzyme that starts the process of digestion!
You may ask what happens when the food is not completely broken down in the intestines. Well, it will stay in the intestines and to the colon where it feeds the bacteria. The bacteria digestion of food particles then causes gas, abdominal pain, rumbling of the stomach and the production of harmful toxins in the colon. Not only that, other health situations such as joint pain and gout can be the result of indigested proteins, fats and minerals that form uric acid crystals that get caught in the joints. With indigestion of food in the blood stream, yeast and fungal can start to grow and then compounded by white flour and sugar. People who experienced extreme fatigue is also caused by the inability to digest proteins and fats due to improper blood circulation.
Which enzymes play the role that helps in efficient digestion? Enzymes like amylase, protease and lipase will digest carbohydrate, protein and fats; while enzymes like bromelain, betaine hydrochloride, papain and pancreatin can help us maintain healthy joints and circulation, besides the digestion of food and absorption of nutrients.
The question now is how to have plentiful amounts of enzymes? Experts suggest the following healthy lifestyle guide for reference:
- Eating raw fruits and vegetables.
- Decrease intake of processed foods.
- Take enzymes supplements like a multi-enzyme formula or a bromelain, papain, betaine hydrochloride supplement could be used to prevent depletion of our body’s own enzymes.
With the above understanding we can see why more and more experts now agree that it is not only what we eat that counts, it is also what we can absorb that is equally important!
Best,
Tan Kok Hui
Nutrition Made Simple, Life Made Rich
It is interesting to know that Enzymes, in addition to their natural functions in our body, they have many other uses like:
- Use in detergents tobreakdown protein or fats that cause stains.
- Use to manufacture antibioties, bread, coffee, vinegar, vitamins, beer, sugars and many other products.
Keywords and phrases
Enzymes and Digestion |Uric Acid | Indigested Proteins | Fats and Minerals | Joint Pain | Joint Health | Blood Stream | Extreme fatigue | Proteins and fats | Blood circulation | Nutrients absorption | Bacteria Digestion | Gas and abdominal pain | Harmful toxins | Colon Health | Raw fruits and vegetables | Multi-enzyme formula | Bromelain, Papain, Betaine Hydrochloride Supplements
References
Enzyme Nutrition – The Food Concept by Dr. Edward Howell
The Body Ecology Diet by Donna Gates with Linda Schatz
