Do we need to take digestive enzymes supplements?
Digestive enzyme supplements significantly increases the body’s ability to extract the nutrients from the food we eat, especially given the poor food quality we have today. Now, you may be thinking, “Do digestive enzymes really work?” They do work in fact; the best digestive enzyme supplements (super digestive enzymes) will give your body the highest percentage of nutrition available from any food source. This is especially crucial if you eat out a lot or cook the majority of your food intake.

What causes lack of digestive enzymes?
Our capacity to extract all the vital nutrition we need diminishes with age. Poor eating habits such as eating fast and not chewing your food enough, poor quality food such as GM (genetically Modified), processed (fast food) and cooked foods will result in poor digestion and consequently, malnutrition. Cooked foods are devoid of enzymes when heated over 115 degrees Fahrenheit. When this happens organs in your body such as the pancreas must then make up the difference and produce more of its own enzymes. This only gets worse as we get older. You may notice that the older you get, the less tolerance you have for certain foods.

Essential Digestive Enzymes:
1. Protease- Breaks down proteins. Aids in the digestion and utilization of dietary proteins. Helps deliver the specific nutrients necessary for muscle and tissue repair.
2. Amylase- Breaks down carbohydrates (starch). Amylase digests starch by catalyzing hydrolysis, which is the splitting of the enzyme by the adding a water molecule. Therefore starch plus water becomes maltose (which is equivalent to two joined glucose molecules). Other enzymes then further digest the maltose to glucose and this is then absorbed through the wall of the small intestine.
3. Lipase- Breaks down fats by splitting large fat molecules (triglycerides) into glycerol and free fatty acids. It also aids in weight control, maintaining and enhancing blood circulation, and helping to maintain proper gall bladder function.
4. Cellulase- Breaks down cellulose(dietary fiber). Digests fiber cellulose into smaller units including D-glucose and helps remedy digestive problems such as malabsorption. Cellulase is important enzyme to supplement with because the human body cannot produce it on its own.
5. Malt Diastase- Breaks down polysaccharides (complex carbohydrates). It is used to relieve flatulence and constipation.