Digestion is the process that breaks down food mechanically and chemically in the gastrointestinal tract to convert the food into absorbable forms. The body can absorb salt and water unchanged, but starches, fats and proteins can’t be absorbed until they have been split into smaller molecules. Enzymes are the leading actors of the digestive process, playing out a script that ensures the body absorbs nutrients properly. Each of the main digestive enzymes has a different role to play. Amylase digests starch. Protease breaks down the peptide bonds that join the amino acids in a protein, ensuring the amino acids are readily available to the body. The enzyme lipase splits apart emulsified fats. These enzymes are secreted by the pancreas and are often referred to as pancreatic enzymes. 

Deficiencies of digestive enzymes can wreak havoc on the digestive tract, causing bloating, flatulence, and gastrointestinal discomfort. Without proper supplies of these enzymes, the body struggles to digest fat, foods high in starches and protein meals frequently consumed in today's modern life styles. Though the cause in the reduction of these digestive enzymes is unknown, research studies suggest an association with stress. Particularly in regards to the over stimulation of the fight / flight response which causes aspects of the autonomic nervous system to become over dominant thus reducing digestive responses.

Symptoms of enzyme deficiency are easily identified. Frequently after meals, you will have one or more of the following symptoms:

• Acid reflux

• Heartburn

• General digestive imbalances

• Bloating, gas, and cramping

• Constipation and poor elimination

• Diarrhoea, etc

Lipase

This enzyme is essential to the body’s ability to break down lipids (fats). In 100 subjects suffering from flatulence, pressure and pain in the stomach, nausea after meals, and belching, lipase therapy and other proteolytic enzymes improved all of the above symptoms in 96 percent of the subjects. In another trial, researchers showed that lipase can assist with the nutrient malabsorption that occurs during HIV infection. Researchers gave lipase and another enzyme called chymotrypsin to 19 HIV patients suffering from malnutrition. After two weeks of supplementing with lipase and the other enzyme, the frequency of cases cured or improved on pancreatic enzyme therapy was significantly higher than that observed during the previous study period without enzyme treatment.

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