Here’s a credibility test for your local health food/vitamin store: Ask which products might help you overcome a bit of heartburn or mild indigestion.
The answer should include an inexpensive bottle of papain, which is extracted from papaya. Chewing three or four tablets after a meal is likely to soothe more than a few touchy tummies. You might well kick an antacids habit — and avoid prescription drugs all-too-often dispensed for digestive upset, when just a minor change in diet might be a better route.
Health practitioners have hotly debated digestive enzymes for years. Enzyme supplement skeptics contend our bodies produce mostly all of the enzymes necessary to digest and process our meals. They point out that enzymes are plentiful in all plant and animal foods. But raw foods proponents and other holistic practitioners counter that cooking food destroys the natural enzyme content. Heat your veggies over 118 degrees Fahrenheit, and the enzymes go poof. Pasteurization, microwaving and even the seemingly healthful canning all result in the same enzyme-obliterating end.
As a sports nutritionist, Julie Burns couldn’t have more mainstream clients than the Chicago White Sox, winners of last fall’s World Series. So when Burns speaks up on behalf of enzyme supplements, she’s hardly a voice from the alternative health fringes.
She regularly advises clients to use digestive enzyme products from brands such as Designs for Health, Tyler and Global Enzymes.
“This is an important area for optimal health,” says Burns, whose SportFuel consulting business is based in the Chicago suburb of Western Springs. “Many people take antacids and medications for reflux when they may have poor digestion due to low stomach acid and poor intestinal enzymes.”
Burns points to a simple approach that can help many of us with “minor problems.” “Sip on apple cider vinegar before and during meals,” she says. “Or you certainly can try papaya enzymes.”
Dr. Elson Haas, founder of Preventive Medical Centers in San Rafael and San Jose in northern California, says different enzymes assist in breaking down the macronutrients protein, fat and carbohydrates. For example, proteases work on processing protein, while amylases do the same for carbs. Lipases break down fats. But the problem, says Haas, is that stress can slow down or block the body’s capacity for enzyme secretion.
Bromelain, readily available in pineapple, is a key enzyme for healthy nutrition, says Haas. It can help reduce inflammation, tissue irritation and swelling after body trauma or surgery, boost the immune system and reduce the arterial plaque buildup responsible for heart disease. When you don’t have easy access to fresh sliced and diced pineapple, a bromelain product in your favorite natural grocery or health food store is a healthful alternative. A daily extract dose of 400 to 1,000 milligrams can bolster heart health and is a popular folk remedy for rheumatoid arthritis patients (who take it twice a day in a more hefty 500- to 1,000-milligram dose).
For her part, Burns recommends Wobenzyme, a German product with multiple enzymes, including papain, to clients recovering from a serious sports injury. She has noted that it speeds the healing process. One theory of why this type of supplement works is that the enzymes increase the numbers and restorative actions of white blood cells.
If you are looking for digestive enzyme products in the store, best bets blend the three major categories of proteases, amylases and lipases. These supplements are usually taken after meals but some practitioners recommend consuming them during a meal heavy on the cooked or processed foods.
There are times when enzyme-speak can get murky, so don’t assume that all digestive enzymes products are alike and equally healthful. There are nearly 30 digestive enzyme products recommended in the venerable Prescription for Nutritional Healing by Dr. James F. Balch and Phyllis A. Balch, and there are just about that many different applications and combinations for enzyme supplementation. One product might contain ox bile, claimed to be a beneficial supplement for gallbladder disorders, while a handful of other products specifically target the heart.
The Balch book suggests a foolproof do-it-yourself method: dry papaya seeds, then put them in a pepper grinder to sprinkle over food.
Raw foods experts, such as Los Angeles author David Wolfe (davidwolfe.com), say that “fermented raw foods” such as seed cheeses and raw sauerkraut (not pasteurized) offer “very high enzymatic activity.” He warns against freezing and refrigeration because it can “hinder” the enzymes. Wolfe says freezing can destroy somewhere between 30 to 66 percent of the natural enzyme content.
Some practitioners suggest that eating high-enzyme foods such as the seed cheeses and raw sauerkraut, along with such enzyme powerhouses as pineapple, papaya, avocados and bananas, can compensate for cooked foods in the diet. Wolfe is less convinced.
“Just because the dangerous effects of cooked and processed foods are not felt immediately does not mean they are not damaging,” he says. “Humans have not adapted to cooked food in the way that people assume. Just because you can chew up something, swallow it and live long enough to tell others about it, does not mean that person has adapted to it.”
White bread is an example of a common staple Wolfe particularly abhors. “White bread has only been around for the last 100 years,” he notes. “People eat white bread en masse and they are still alive. Does that mean humans have adapted to white bread?” The raw foodist doesn’t need to wait for an answer.
“Cooked and processed foods have a cumulative effect on the body,” he says. “The body’s enzyme potential will decrease over time. Once the enzyme potential is diminished beyond a certain threshold, the body wears out and internal organs feel the damage.”
Andrew Mulholland writes frequently about health and wellness for Conscious Enlightenment publications.