About Enzymes 

Everything that lives – human, plant and animal – requires enzymes!

Enzymes are a protein-based substance necessary to bring about bio-chemical reactions found in every living cell. (They are also responsible for seeds sprouting, grass, trees and shrubs growing, flowers blooming, the fermentation of beer and wine, and the ripening of bananas and tomatoes.)

Life cannot be sustained without enzymes. 

Enzymes operate on chemical and biological levels – they catalyze and regulate nearly all biochemical reactions that occur within the human body. They don’t perform the work; they are the conductors, and cannot be synthetically manufactured. The body contains over 3,000 varieties of enzymes – many working in synchronicity with one another.

 Enzyme functions provide the following health benefits:

• Aid digestion and absorption

• Dissolve blood clots

• Anti-inflammatory

• Anti-wrinkle and biological anti-aging

• Assist in glucose balance

• Assist healing and pain modulation

• Immune stimulators

• Assist respiratory functions

We are born with a full supply of enzymes. However, as we age, our enzyme reserves become depleted. Since enzymes are extremely sensitive to heat, even low temperatures will destroy them. To obtain enzymes from a food source, the food must be eaten raw or in fresh juice. Cooking or heating foods depletes all enzymes but, thankfully, they can be replaced by a full-spectrum enzyme supplementation. 

Our bodies cannot absorb food without the enzyme activity contained within the food. Food devoid of enzymatic activity leads to undigested food in the blood which causes malnutrition, obesity, digestive disorders, chronic illness, premature aging, and an overall shortened lifespan.  

Two Classes of Enzymes: Two Specific Uses

Digestive Enzymes  

Trivialized, untreated, overmedicated and misunderstood – gastrointestinal disorders chronically plague more than 95 million Americans! Taking digestive enzymes can help. 

The primary work of digestive enzymes is to break down proteins, carbohydrates and fats into smaller particles so the body can more easily absorb the nutrients through the stomach and small intestine. Digestion is primarily performed in the stomach and finished in the small intestine. The effect on intestinal micro-flora as a consequence of digestive efficiency includes stimulating the “good” bacteria in the gut, detoxifying and cleansing the colon, and improving digestive disorders that also includes food and environmental allergies. 

The primary enzymes used for digestion include: 

• Proteases: break down proteins (beef, chicken, poultry, fish)
• Amylases: break down carbohydrates, including starches (bread, pasta, potatoes, fruits, vegetables, sugars)
• Cellulase: break down cellulose (plant fiber), the indigestible part of fiber found in many fruits and vegetables
• Lipase: break down fats
• Papain (proteolytic enzyme): break down proteins
• Bromelain (proteolytic enzyme): break down proteins
• Maltase: break down malt sugar, grains
• Lactase: break down milk sugar
• Invertase: break down sucrose (table sugar)

(The body does not make Cellulase, an enzyme necessary for proper digestion of fiber, so it must be introduced through the raw foods we eat or through supplementation.) 

Note: The most effective benefits of digestive supplementation are achieved by taking your enzymes in the following manner:

• After a couple of bites of food, swallow one enzyme (or sprinkle onto food).
• In the middle of the meal, or at the end, take an additional enzyme.

This practice allows for a type of “time-released” action and provides sustained digestion and absorption. 

How do you know if you have enough enzymes? 

• Age: Remember that as we age, our enzyme stores get depleted. So, if you are over 30, chances are good that you do not produce sufficient enzymes.
• Diet: If you are not eating fresh fruits and vegetables for at least 90% of your diet.
• Symptoms: Fatigue, weight gain, premature aging and loss of skin tone, indigestion, headaches, constipation, belching, bloating and general malaise are all symptoms of enzyme depletion.

Metabolic/Systemic Oral Enzymes 

Metabolic enzymes are used for systemic purposes in the bloodstream, unlike digestive enzymes that are used in the stomach and small intestines. They help us heal faster by repairing cells and stimulating enzymatic biological activity. In addition, they stimulate healthy production of messenger immune cells (cytokines) which reduce inflammation and speed up immunity by producing a cleansing effect and helping to break up irritating circulating immune complexes (CICs) at the center of the body’s immune/inflammation reaction.  

Benefits of Metabolic/Systemic Oral Enzymes 

• Degrade protein molecules that penetrate from the blood capillaries into the tissues where they subsequently cause edema and exacerbate the inflammatory process.
• Increase the flexibility of red blood cells, improving their ability to pass through the capillaries.
• Inhibit the aggregation of platelets.
• Degrade cell fragments and mediators of inflammation and infection.
• Increase the fibrinolytic activities in the blood, helping to prevent abnormal clotting.
• Activate white blood cells (macrophages) the natural killer cells, better equipping the immune system to deal with inflammation by cleansing itself of cellular debris and quickly neutralizing errant cancer cells.
• Support the cleansing of the tissues and promote better circulation.
• Stimulate formation of new, healthy tissue.

Most conventional treatments address symptoms of inflammation with anti-inflammatory medications, and don’t address the underlying systemic conditions. It is my opinion, and I speak from personal and clinical experience, that metabolic systemic oral enzymes offer the first mainstream long-term treatment option for inflammatory disorders. This is particularly true when compared to corticosteroids and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) which can cause serious side effects. Taking metabolic/systemic oral enzymes can help with pain and inflammation, naturally. 

Note: Take metabolic/systemic oral enzymes on an empty stomach – at least 45 minutes before or after eating. If you take them with food or close to when you eat food, they will act as digestive enzymes and their systemic anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving benefits will be significantly diluted. 

Copyright © 2006, Gloria E. Gilbère, LLC