Great question!
Just about everyone knows the importance and value of vitamins and minerals and about how necessary they are for
optimum good health. Now, thanks to a variety of reasons, there is even a high degree of herbal knowledge
circulating in most health conscious minds.
But, sadly, the needs and requirements of the human body for enzymes and knowledge in general about enzymes is sadly
lacking in for most of us.
The
role of enzymes in supplementation and therapy is just not “there” yet despite the vast amount of intensive study
and research that has been done on this topic.
In a nutshell life as we know it would not exist without enzymes!
Enzymes are basically protein taken from food and are also made by our bodies.
They must be present before any chemical reaction can take place in our bodies.
That is a very powerful statement when you think about it ramifications! Even
vitamins, minerals and hormones cannot do their jobs without enzymes!
Though enzymes are too small to be seen through even the most
powerful microscopes, they are the catalysts, the dynamic power that gives each of us the ability to move and to function
at the peak of good health. Our bodies cannot exist without enzymes and their activities!
Given the importance of enzymes I
thought I would take this opportunity to talk a little bit about them today and will add to this blog over the next days or
however long it takes to give a good overview of enzymes and what they do for us, and how to incorporate enzymes therapy into
our everyday lives.
I
will start with the enzymes that are called “digestive plant enzymes”. There are four major
and three minor enzymes which are required for proper digestion to take place.
Amylase:
Amylase aids the digestion of carbohydrates and starches. Think of fruit, vegetables, pasta, and
bread. Undigested or partially digested carbohydrates and or starches begin to ferment in our systems,
creating gas and other symptoms of discomfort.
Protease:
Protease enzymes digest proteins. Think of meats like beef, chicken,
fish and also any other food that contains protein, like beans and nuts. If not digested properly protein
begins to putrefy in our systems causing indigestion and toxicity.
Lipase:
Lipase
breaks down fats and also assists in balancing fatty acids. Fats that are not completely digested turn
rancid in our bodies and create pungent odors and poor cholesterol balance.
Cellulase:
Cellulase
breaks down cellulose. Cellulose is the fibers found in vegetables and other plant materials.
The body produces many, many enzymes but cellulose is not one of them. The commercial fiber we sometimes
ingest to clean out our colons often just creates more intestinal problems. Undigested fiber leaves a wax-like
reside in the our small intestines and makes absorption maladies worse.
Lactase:
If there is one enzyme most people have heard of it is probably lactase which is used by our bodies to break down
the milk sugar lactose. Many people are lactose intolerant which has made this enzyme more known.
If the human body is not producing lactase, the lactose in milk is not broken down, resulting in digestive problems.
Sucrase
and Maltase:
These two lesser known enzymes are used by our bodies
to break down food sugars.
Can
you see a pattern here?
Think
about the names the above mentioned enzymes have… their names give you clues as to what their functions are.
That is an easy way to take a rudimentary knowledge about enzymes with you when you make purchases.
My next blog will cover what some
common sources of enzymes are and why we need them.
