If you walk down a supplement aisle at the supermarket, you would probably have noticed supplements like digestive enzymes appearing.
Digestive enzymes have become increasingly popular over the years, but what exactly are they, and should you take them? In this article, we will examine enzymes, the different types, and the facts about this relatively new trend.
If we break down this phrase, enzymes are proteins that speed up chemical reactions in your body. Digestive enzymes are proteins that help you digest your food; without them, your food would not be able to be digested properly.
Digestive enzymes refer to a family of enzymes that are involved in digestion, which include:
Various body parts produce digestive enzymes, including your tongue, pancreas, gallbladder, liver, and intestine.
These parts of your body produce digestive enzymes in response to the anticipation of eating, the smell and taste of food, and the digestive process.
The pancreas produces protease, amylase, and lipase, the main enzymes involved in digestion. The pancreas also produces other enzymes that help us break down food, such as lactase, sucrase, and maltase, which are made in the small intestine.
Every digestive enzyme in your body breaks down a specific nutrient; the clue is in the name.
Protease breaks down protein, lipase breaks down fat, amylase breaks down starch, lactase breaks down lactose, sucrase breaks down sucrose, and maltase breaks down maltose.
Without these enzymes, your body is unable to break down the nutrients. If the nutrient cannot be broken down, it results in an intolerance to that specific nutrient, such as lactose intolerance or the inability to digest fat.
Digestive enzymes are not only found in your body. Certain foods and spices also contain natural enzymes that help with digestion.
For example:
If the level of digestive enzymes in your body is low, specific nutrients cannot be broken down.
If the nutrients aren’t broken down, they remain partially digested, which can result in symptoms such as pain, bloating, flatulence, nausea, and diarrhea (typically with foul-smelling stool that has an oily and floating appearance).
Blood or stool tests can determine the level of enzymes in your body. The enzymes mainly tested are the pancreatic ones: amylase, protease, and lipase.
Your enzymes can be low for multiple reasons. They can be low due to genetics, lifestyle, pancreas damage (in the case of Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency, or EPI), or gastrointestinal tract (GIT) damage.
Common conditions that can cause EPI are pancreatitis, also known as inflammation of the pancreas, pancreatic cancer, and cystic fibrosis. Damage to the gut from illnesses such as Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) also frequently causes a deficiency in the enzymes produced in the gut, such as sucrase and lactase.
At the same time, while some conditions result in a deficiency of these enzymes, there are also conditions where the digestive enzymes are elevated on the opposite end of the spectrum. These conditions include pancreatic cancer, a blockage within the pancreas, and acute pancreatitis.
Elevated pancreatic enzyme symptoms are similar to those of low pancreatic enzymes, such as pain, nausea, vomiting, fever, and a rapid pulse.
This is why it’s important to check the levels of your pancreatic enzymes to distinguish whether they are high or low.
If your enzymes are low, there are several ways to attempt to correct them. Supplemental enzymes and a diet low in fat are often used. However, it’s also important to work to correct the primary cause of the low digestive enzymes.
Reducing the amount of fat in your diet helps to reduce the use of digestive enzymes such as lipase and amylase. This will result in a reduction of pain, bloating, and diarrhea.
While some foods naturally contain enzymes, the evidence that they will help aid in digestion is limited. Certain foods like pineapples, mangoes, bananas, avocados, kimchi, ginger, sauerkraut, and kiwi contain natural enzymes.
Supplemental digestive enzymes are enzymes made commercially for supplemental use. These supplements are typically pills, powders, or liquids and are available over the counter or through prescription.
Different supplements contain different enzymes. If you are considering taking supplemental enzymes, be sure to look at the label to determine which digestive enzymes it contains.
Typically, digestive enzyme supplements contain a combination of enzymes such as lipase, protease, amylase, and lactase. Certain supplements that target a specific condition will normally contain enzymes that are related to that condition. For example, digestive enzymes for lactose intolerance contain lactase and enzymes for fat malabsorption contain lipase, protease, and amylase.
Enzymes are commercially extracted from plant or animal tissue. They are then purified and formed into supplemental pills or liquids.
The source of the digestive enzymes depends on the company. Some companies focus on plant-based sources of enzymes, and others focus on animal-based sources, such as pigs.
The only FDA-regulated products with digestive enzymes are Pancreatic Enzyme Replacement Therapy (PERT) such as Creon, Pancreaze, and ZenPep. This form of therapy requires a prescription and is used by patients with diagnosed pancreatic enzyme insufficiency.
Enzymes can also be found over the counter, but quantity and quality vary widely.
In the case of pancreatic enzyme insufficiency, digestive enzymes have a place.
Research involving digestive enzymes in the case of IBS and GIT irritation is still in the early phases. Some studies have found that taking a digestive enzyme before a meal could help reduce symptoms of bloating and diarrhea. However, more research is needed. Bloating right after eating might be a sign of inadequate digestion, and taking enzymes has sometimes been shown to help reduce bloating postprandially.
Digestive enzymes should be taken just before a meal. This way, they can start digesting the food as it enters the stomach.
Some enzymes also depend on the food you are planning to eat. If you are taking a digestive enzyme supplement that contains a specific enzyme, such as lactase, then the supplement will only be needed when you consume sources of lactose, such as dairy products. If you're taking a digestive enzyme supplement that contains a combination of enzymes, it is best to take it with every meal.
Inflammation is your body's response to stress, whether physical, emotional, or psychological. The GIT is one of the organs that regulates the inflammation response in the body as part of the Inflammation Circuit. If this circuit becomes imbalanced, conditions such as leaky gut, IBS, and suppressed digestive functioning can occur. Chronic inflammation is common with Adrenal Fatigue Syndrome (AFS) and chronic stress.
These conditions can cause symptoms similar to symptoms of having low levels of digestive enzymes.
Since over-the-counter digestive enzymes are not regulated by the FDA, the quality and authenticity of the ingredients cannot be guaranteed. This could result in your body reacting negatively to the digestive enzyme rather than being helped by it.
With some conditions, like AFS or chronic digestive disorders, the body is very sensitive, with the inflammation cycle being imbalanced. This can lead to an enhanced and potentially negative response to anything that enters the body.
If you are concerned about your enzymes and your body’s ability to digest food, you should first chat with your healthcare provider. This way, your healthcare provider can order blood tests to determine the enzymes needed and plan a course of action to support your body rather than hinder it.
Digestive enzymes are naturally available within your body and help us to digest and utilize nutrients. Unless they are reduced by illness, genetic, or lifestyle issues, your enzymes will likely be healthy. They can also be high or low, so getting tested is important to ensure you know what you are dealing with. Also, it can help to address the cause of low digestive enzyme levels rather than simply taking a supplement.
Supplemental digestive enzymes can help restore low levels of digestive enzymes. However, if levels are normal, there is no evidence that they will further support digestion.
If you are concerned about your digestive health and want a program right for you, talk to our team at +1 (626) 571-1234 for a free consultation.
Whilst both help with digestion, digestive enzymes are proteins that assist in the breakdown of food. Probiotics are living microorganisms that live in your gut and help keep your gut healthy to support your enzymes. Although they support a healthy gut, they are not involved in the breakdown of food.
