How to Improve Digestion with Enzymes
Our digestive systems are certainly challenged this time of year. Those with impaired digestion must struggle with the desire to eat all the delicious holiday foods knowing the suffering that will follow. Even with a good digestive system, eating too much and too many different things at one meal can cause problems. A key nutrient that almost everybody is lacking to some degree is enzymes. This is due to the overprocessing and refining of foods.
Our bodies manufacture some of their enzymes and others are to be obtained by eating enzyme-rich foods, mostly raw. Cooking foods over 118 degrees F destroys the enzyme content. Food growers and manufacturers destroy the enzymes in our food by treating it with certain chemicals that retard spoilage to give it longer shelf life. If they didn’t do this, the fruits and vegetables would be rotten before they hit the supermarket shelves. Pasteurization is another modern-day necessary evil for an extended shelf life that leaves our food’s nutrients and enzymes depleted.
The first step for “how to improve digestion” is to chew the food until it is completely smooth. This will require a little extra time for each bite will be chewed on an average of 100 times. It is supposed to be in a pureed state before swallowing. I know people who only chew their food a few times before gulping it down. While chewing, saliva releases the enzyme amylase that starts to break down starch into smaller glucose molecules.
Some foods can be added to the diet that contains enzymes and also stimulate the formation of more enzymes such as raw papaya, raw pineapple, raw unpasteurized apple cider vinegar (one teaspoon in water three times a day), and fermented foods that are high in probiotics like sour yogurt (sorry, not the sweet kind), sauerkraut or kimchi.
For some, a probiotic supplement may be needed due to the overuse of antibiotics and diets high in sugar and refined carbohydrates. It may be consumed in powder or capsule form upon awakening and at bedtime. Some people may only need a cup of digestive tea after meals.
The following teas may be found individually or in combination; catnip, fennel, anise, ginger, peppermint, and papaya. Multiple digestive enzymes may be taken in capsule or tablet form with meals. It provides all the enzymes needed to digest all the food groups.
It should contain at least the top four enzymes; protease for digesting proteins, amylase for digesting carbohydrates, lipase for digesting fats, and hydrochloric acid (HCI) for digesting animal proteins. Our body’s production of HCI starts to diminish at age 25 or so. With all the high protein diets that have gained popularity, hypochlorhydria (HCI deficiency) is on the rise.
Those that don’t digest dairy well may want to add a separate lactase digesting enzyme, for there may not be enough in an enzyme multiple. Another popular way to enhance digestion is to chew papaya enzyme tablets after a meal. Papaya contains papain that is an enzyme effective in digesting proteins.
Amylase is usually added to help digest carbohydrates. As expensive as it is to buy fresh papayas, I’m amazed at how inexpensive the chewable papaya enzymes are. They taste good too. True vegetarians may want to use a product that doesn’t contain HCI since they don’t eat animal proteins.
Note: supplementing HCI for those with acid reflux may be contraindicated while esophageal inflammation persists. My final digestion tip is charcoal capsules. They are handy to have on hand and should not be taken regular basis, for they may deplete the body of nutrients.
They are great to use for extreme cases of gas, bloating, nausea, diarrhea, and upset stomach which occur frequently this time of year. The charcoal will absorb excess acids and relief is usually within a half-hour. Charcoal is approved by the poison control center and I never go anywhere without it.
Remember… work less, play more…hate less love more… talk less, say more… eat less, CHEW MORE… and all good things will be yours.
