Enzymes are substances that play a role in breaking down food during digestion. They are essential to the body: they allow it to extract and sort nutrients from ingested food. During this process, enzymes remain active before being destroyed or rather inactivated in turn. Enzymes are destroyed with even the slightest cooking: cooked foods thus lose most of their initial enzymes and nutrients. Aging and stress decrease the natural production of enzymes by the body. It is possible to mitigate these effects by taking dietary supplements containing enzymes and increasing the proportion of raw foods in one's diet.
Digestion, How it Works
Digestion is a complicated mechanism with chemical, physical, and mechanical stages, and enzymes play a very important role in it. Digestion begins in the mouth. Saliva and chewing start the process of breaking down food. Saliva contains amylases or enzymes that extract carbohydrates from food. The food then enters the esophagus and then reaches the stomach. The stomach secretes acids and enzymes such as pepsin, lipase, or rennet, which help break down food through stomach movements. When the stomach is too full, it sometimes happens that the valve at the end of the esophagus weakens, causing reflux and the famous heartburn. These are caused by acids from the stomach that mistakenly enter the esophagus and cause a burning sensation. After passing through the stomach, the food bolus descends into the small intestine, where it is broken down by bile from the liver and gallbladder and by other enzymes from the pancreas, including trypsin, chymotrypsin, nucleases, and amylases. When their journey through the six meters of the intestine is complete, the foods are completely digested, and what remains is eliminated.
An additional intake of digestive enzymes promoting digestion is recommended for people with one or more of the following problems: Heartburn, Acid reflux, Constipation, Lactose intolerance, Food allergies and intolerances, Stress, Fatigue, Digestive problems related to aging, Immune system problems, Irritable bowel syndrome, Chronic diseases, Overweight.
Supplementation for Better Digestion
To improve the quality of digestion, it is possible to supplement one's diet with substances that promote digestion:
- Digestive Enzymes: these are fairly easy to find in food (pineapple, fermented papaya, raw food) or in the form of dietary supplements.
- Probiotics: living organisms, they are found in fermented foods such as yogurt, brewer's yeast, sourdough, lacto-fermented foods. Dietary supplements can be chosen, especially in crisis situations (diarrhea, constipation, bloating) to promote a return to normal.
- Prebiotics: these are fibers that improve intestinal transit by adding volume to stools to facilitate their elimination.
- Digestive Plants: They have always been used to accompany people suffering from digestive and transit disorders. Peppermint, hibiscus, nettle, artichoke, anise, licorice, verbena, rhubarb, and turmeric are among the plants known for their properties on digestion and transit.