Digestive Enzymes Guide: How do they work and what are the best digestive enzymes?

What are digestive enzymes?

Digestive Enzymes are proteins that break down food into nutrients that our bodies can absorb. There are a wide range of different enzymes which occur naturally in the body, and they all help to break down different types of food.

What do digestive enzymes do?

The majority of digestive enzymes have different roles to play. That said all digestive enzymes act as a catalyst in the reactions that cause common macronutrients to break down into smaller, more absorbable components. This means that digestive enzymes not only break down the food that we eat, but they also break down the carbohydrates, fats, proteins and everything else.

Where do digestive enzymes come from?

Digestive enzymes are produced naturally by humans. A great example of this is amylase, an enzyme that breaks down sugar, is found naturally in saliva.

Digestive enzymes are also made in the stomach, pancreas and small intestine.

The trouble is that many humans suffer from either an imbalance or deficiency of digestive enzymes and this can cause digestive discomfort when you eat the wrong foods. The most common feelings are bloating, gas and sometimes can even be as bad as diarrhoea or nausea.

The most classic examples of this are gluten and dairy. We are discovering that more and more people have mild or major intolerances to both gluten and dairy - many experts estimate that over two thirds of humans have some level of lactose intolerance!¹

This makes a lot of sense too – humans only started consuming dairy en masse between 6000 and 10,000 years ago. In the previous 290,000 years before this it was not a part of human diets. This means that the human body is still adapting to drinking milk beyond early childhood. In addition studies have shown that after babies are weaned off breast milk, lactase, the digestive enzyme responsible for breaking down milk, declines in the majority of people.

Can I still drink milk if I am lactose intolerant?

Intolerance varies from person to person and lots of people are able to consume small quantities of milk without too much discomfort.

That said lots of people who suffer from dairy intolerance are now taking lactase enzyme supplements to help increase the presence of lactase in their digestive system. When taken right before having milk this helps the body to break it down more effectively and thus reduces or sometimes eliminates the sensations associated with lactose intolerance.

Is it possible to increase the levels of digestive enzymes naturally?

Yes. There are quite a few different foods you can eat which naturally enhance the level of digestive enzymes. Great examples of this are pineapple, papaya, mango, banana and avocado. Fermented foods like yoghurts are a source of both digestive enzymes and probiotics which both work in tandem to improve digestion.

Lastly honey contains enzymes which help the body to break down carbohydrates, sugars and proteins more efficiently.²

There are other ways to improve the quality of your digestion. It is always important to chew your food thoroughly as this ensures that whatever you swallow is well broken down which makes it easier for your stomach to digest whatever comes into it. In addition, drinking lots of water enhances the function of digestive enzymes.

When should I take digestive enzymes?

If you have already tried natural approaches to enhancing your digestion and have already tried probiotics then it’s worth exploring whether digestive enzymes could aid your comfort and wellness.

Sometimes it can be quite effective to keep a food diary for a short period of time; recording everything you eat and how you feel afterwards. Sometimes this can help you work out if a particular food group makes you feel worse than any other.

If you feel a constant discomfort after eating but are not sure what might be causing it then consider starting off by taking a broad spectrum digestive enzyme. These sorts of products contain a wide range of enzymes and so enhance digestion across all food types and groups.

What is the best time to take a digestive enzyme?

Digestive enzymes work best when they are taken right before a meal. Taking one 10-15 minutes before you eat is often the most effective way to get the benefits out of them.

What happens if you take a digestive enzyme during or after a meal?

This will still be effective, though not strictly as effective as taking it before the meal. To some extent you can think of your digestive system as a conveyor belt. Eating food that you find hard to digest and then taking enzymes afterwards will mean that the food is already working its way through your gut whilst the enzymes are still trying to get there to support.

What should you expect when taking digestive enzymes?

The most common things people notice when they start using digestive enzymes is that they feel less bloating, gas and nausea after eating. That said there are many other things that people start to notice over time.

Generally when your food is well broken down and the nutrients are well absorbed this also means that your body pushes out the waste products more efficiently. As such people using digestive enzymes experience increased regularity in terms of their bowel movements.

That said it is also worth remembering that digestive enzymes might mean that you absorb more of the goodness from the food that you eat. This means that digestive enzymes could lend themselves to you experiencing improved wellness through better immunity, sleep or other factors that impact your overall wellness.

Could digestive enzymes help me lose weight?

Whilst digestive enzymes will improve the way in which your food gets broken down in the body, this does not strictly mean that they will help you lose weight.

It’s possible that digestive enzymes may support weight loss in a secondary way. For example, if you supplement with digestive enzymes these may improve the way your body digests and utilises protein. Protein is a food group that makes us feel fuller for longer and so if your body makes better use of the protein you consume it may be easier to reduce your calorie intake.

In addition to this digestive enzymes can help to keep blood sugar levels more stable because they break down sugars. As a result this might reduce sugar cravings; when we eat sugary foods this usually causes our bloody sugar to spike. When the blood sugar levels drop we then crave more sugar. Digestive enzymes work to keep blood sugar more stable and thus can help reduce those cravings which may aid weight loss.

Final Thoughts

We are learning more and more that so many people suffer from a range of food intolerances. The trouble is that sometimes you want to be able to eat what you want rather than requesting a allergen focussed meal (e.g. Gluten or Dairy free). Digestive enzymes are a great way to give you a bit of freedom to choose what you want and to give you the confidence that you won’t feel dreadful afterwards.