Under ideal circumstances, your body can break down food and absorb nutrients effectively. Unfortunately, we are not living in a perfect world, and many people are dealing withΒ digestive issues. Perhaps you are one of them.
Suppose you are dealing with digestive difficulties or other symptoms related to nutrient deficits. In that case, you may benefit from taking digestive enzymes.
This article will answer all your questions you may have about digestive enzymes. Letβs dig in.
Do I Need Digestive Enzymes?
Digestive enzymes are essential enzymes that help your digestive system by breaking down large macromolecules in your food into smaller molecules that your body can absorb. There are three classes of digestive enzymes. Proteolytic enzymes digest protein. Lipases digest fat, and amylase digest carbs.
Digestive enzymes that humans need include:
- Amylase: breaks downΒ carbohydrate
- Pepsin: breaks down protein
- Lipase: breaks down fat
- Cellulase: breaks down fiber
- Lactase: breaks down lactose
- Sucrase: breaks downΒ sugarΒ sucrose into glucose and fructose
- Maltase: breaks down sugar maltose into smaller glucose molecules
How Do Digestive Enzymes Work?
Digestive enzymes are essential for yourΒ digestion.
- First, salivary amylase is released through your saliva to start breaking down your food.
- Next, the parietal cells of your stomach release acids, pepsin, gastric amylase, and other enzymes to break the partially digested food into chyme, a semifluid semi-digested food.
- Then your stomach acid helps to neutralize the salivatory amylase to allow the gastric amylase to work better.
- An hour later, the chyme moves into the duodenum, the upper small intestine, where the hormone secretin gets released.
- It is followed by the pancreas releasing hormones, bicarbonate, bile, and enzymes, such as lipase, amylase, nuclease, and trypsin.
- With the help of the bicarbonate that changes the acidity of the chyme to alkaline, the enzymes can break down your food.
Digestive Enzyme Benefits
- Assist in breaking down nutrients
- Improve digestion
- Improves IBS, acid reflux, and other digestive disorders
- Enhance nutrient absorption
- Prevent nutritional deficiency
- Prevent and treatΒ leaky gut
Do You Need To Take Digestive Enzyme Supplements?
While your body naturally has digestive enzymes, many people donβt have enough, making supplementation beneficial and often necessary. If you experience any digestion difficulties or symptoms, you may benefit from digestive enzymes.
If you have the following symptoms, you may benefit from taking digestive enzymes:
- Cravings for certain foods
- Thyroid problems
- Heartburn, indigestion, or burping
- Hair that is thinning or falling out
- Dry or lackluster skin
- Trouble concentrating or brain fog
- MorningΒ fatigue
- Trouble sleeping well
- Feeling too tired to exercise
- Mood swings, depression, or irritability
- Headaches or migraines
- Worsened PMS
Sources of digestive enzymes
- Fruit-sourced: from pineapple and papaya
- Plant-sourced; from probiotics, yeast, and fungi
- Animal-sourced: from ox or hog
Enzymes to look for in a full spectrum digestive enzyme supplement
- Alpha-galactosidase
- Amylase
- Cellulase
- Glucoamylase
- Invertase
- Lactase
- Lipase
- Malt diastase
- Protease (or acid proteases)
- Peptidase
- Beta-glucanase
- Pectinase
- Phytase
Foods With Natural Enzymes
- Pineapple
- Papaya
- Kiwi
- Kefir and yogurt
- Bananas
- Mango
- Miso, soy sauce, and tempeh (fermented soy products)
- Sauerkraut and kimchi
- Avocado
- Bee pollen
- Apple cider vinegar
- Raw honey
Potential Side Effects Of Digestive Enzymes
Digestive enzymes are usually well-tolerated and beneficial. Side-effects may include nausea, diarrhea, stomach cramps, gas, headaches, dizziness, and allergic reactions.
If you have a history of liver or gallbladder disease or ulcers, some digestive enzymes may not be correct. Always talk to your doctor before taking them. If you take any daily medications, have health problems, or have any questions, talk to your doctor before taking digestive enzymes.
Digestive enzymes can significantly improve your digestion and other symptoms by helping your body break down food and absorb nutrients effectively. Most people can benefit from taking digestive enzymes. However, always talk to your doctor before taking them.
Do you take digestive enzymes? Do you have any questions regarding digestive enzymes? Comment below; we would love to hear from you.
References
- https://www.uofmhealth.org/health-library/hn-2840008
- https://www.rxlist.com/consumer_digestive_enzymes_zenpep/drugs-condition.htm
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11773607
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19152478
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4923703/
- https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/digestive-diseases/digestive-system-how-it-works
