Full Spectrum Plant Enzymes can greatly increase your ability to maximize the benefits of your food and your health. Enzymes speed up reactions. There are thousands of enzymes filling thousands of roles throughout the body.

In digestion, enzymes are required to help break bigger molecules down into smaller components, making nutrients easier to absorb into the bloodstream or lymphatic system. Plant enzymes are a type of digesting enzyme that is naturally found in the foods you eat. Plant enzymes are part of your digestive team, along with digestive juices like stomach acid, bile and pancreatic enzymes, and microbes that live all throughout your digestive system.

When any of these players are deficient, it can greatly affect the quality of digestion and absorption. If these nutrients are not broken down, all sorts of digestive upset can occur. A feeling of fullness, excess burping, bloating or flatulence, abdominal pain, constipation or diarrhea can all be connected to improperly digested foods.

Undigested foods can also feed undesirable microbes, contributing to overgrowth of bacteria or fungi. We are also not absorbing the nutrients into the body, contributing to nutritional deficiencies. Not really the point of eating great food!

All these digestive players can become deficient for many reasons. Chronic stress or eating while stressed or multitasking, dehydration, liver overload, excess refined carbohydrates, certain medications or treatments, antibiotics and gallbladder removal can all contribute.

Parasites, food allergies or intolerances, white sugar, or undigested foods can all contribute to damage of the intestinal lining, which greatly affects digestion and absorption.

Digestive strength also naturally decrease with age. Your diet may be deficient in plant enzymes, as they are destroyed with cooking or heating over ° F. While on one hand cooking can make foods easier to digest, on the other it can deplete the innate enzymes that help us break down the nutrients.

A diet high in cooked, processed, or not-fresh raw foods does not provide the plant enzymes required to help your own digestive juices break down nutrients for absorption.

Taking plant enzymes with meals can support your digestive capacity, increase absorption and decrease digestive symptoms. Unlike conventional digestive aids, plant enzymes not only ease unpleasant digestive symptoms — such as nausea, diarrhea, upset stomach and inflammation — but they also help our bodies absorb nutrients better.

The result is improved digestion, higher nutrient absorption and a healthier body that is less susceptible to infection, fatigue and degenerative diseases.

A: Plant enzymes are naturally found in plants, and start working as soon as you start chewing your food. In supplement form, they are produced by various types of fungi. Supplemental pancreatic enzymes are sourced from pigs, therefore not compatible with vegan or vegetarian diets.

A: Antacids can provide temporary symptomatic relief, but are actually negatively affecting your digestive function by bringing up the pH in your stomach.

This decreases your absorption, without addressing the reason for the discomfort. Taking plant enzymes actually increases digestion, getting rid of the cause of the pain. Q: What turns on the plant enzymes in my body? A: Heat, proper pH, and moisture.

Body temperature is ideal for turning on enzymes but they are destroyed at temperatures over oF, which includes most of our cooking. Plant enzymes can be active with pH levels from 3 to 7, which corresponds with most areas of your digestive tract.

And water from chewing and saliva provides H2O for adding to the new smaller molecules. Ideally, all those are the norm when you eat, turning on the plant enzymes well.

Q: What does the pH range signify? Why is it so broad? A: pH is the measurement of acid strength. Throughout your digestive tract, the pH varies, from pH of 2 in the stomach to pH of 8 in the duodenum. Q: How else can I increase my nutrient absorption? A: Eat mindfully.

Stop and pay attention to the smells, get your mouth salivating. Chew, chew, chew. Eat slowly. Eat meals or snacks, but avoid grazing. Avoid eating at least 2 hours before bed, and take 12 hours off without food overnight.

These are all simple techniques to help our digestive system turn on more effectively. However, on a recent trip to France, I was running out of lactose pills and the pharmacist told me to take their French digestive enzymes instead.

So very happy I did! This was the first natural health product I was ever introduced to and it improved my digestion so much that it made me open up to many of their other supplements to improve other areas of health.

Such a game changing product. Hi there! Thank you so much for the feedback! Happy to hear that the product has helped you with digestion : Thank you! I had so much hope for digestion support but unfortunately the side effects of stomach pain were worse than the issue I was avoiding.

Hi there, Thank you for your feedback! We are sorry to hear that this product did not support you. Some of the conditions that may cause pancreatic insufficiency include surgery Whipple procedure or total pancreatectomy , blockage or narrowing of the pancreatic or biliary duct the tubes that carry pancreatic juice or bile , pancreatic or duodenal tumors, cystic fibrosis or pancreatitis.

Patients with these symptoms should discuss with their medical team whether taking supplemental pancreatic enzymes may be beneficial for them. Other patients may need enzymes for a few months or years after surgery. Patients who have radiation therapy along with the Whipple procedure are much more likely to have long-term malabsorption.

Fat absorption usually does not return to normal in these patients even if they are taking enzyme replacement products. In this case, the goal is to eliminate diarrhea, restore adequate nutrition and prevent weight loss.

MCT Medium Chain Triglyceride oil may help control weight loss in patients with uncontrolled malabsorption. MCT oil is a calorie-rich type of fat that bypasses usual fat absorption and is rapidly absorbed by the body.

It is found naturally in coconut oil, palm kernel oil and butter. MCT oil is added to some medical nutritional supplements and can also be purchased alone as a nutritional supplement. Use of oral nutritional supplements may promote weight gain, help increase strength and physical activity, and improve quality of life.

For these patients, a combination of pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy, nutritional counseling and drainage of the bile duct can prevent weight loss and improve symptoms.

Pancreatic enzyme products are available in both prescription and non-prescription forms. The different brands of pancreatic enzyme products are not identical.

All prescription pancreatic enzyme products are regulated by the United States Food and Drug Administration FDA to ensure their effectiveness, safety and manufacturing consistency. Over-the-counter pancreatic enzyme supplements are available without a prescription. Since they are classified as dietary supplements rather than drugs, the FDA does not control their production.

While manufacturers of over-the-counter supplements are required to ensure the safety of their products, there are no controls on manufacturing consistency from one batch to the next. Therefore, these products are not recommended for use in patients with pancreatic cancer.

The recommended type and dosage of pancreatic enzymes must be individualized for each person. Most people should start off by taking 10, — 20, lipase units with snacks and 20, — 40, lipase units with meals. Patients should not exceed 2, lipase units per kilogram of body weight per meal assuming 4 meals per day.

For example, a person that weighs pounds 68kg could safely take up to , units of lipase at one meal. Some individuals adapt to different doses of enzymes throughout their care. It is important to discuss with a doctor or dietitian the appropriate type and dose of pancreatic enzymes at regular visits.

All prescription enzymes come from a porcine pig source. Approved by the United States FDA: CREON® capsules Pancreaze® capsules Pertzye® capsules Viokace® capsules Zenpep® capsules. The doctor may prescribe an acid-reducing medication to help improve the effectiveness of some pancreatic enzyme products.

Acid reducing medications include proton pump inhibitors, such as esomeprazole Nexium® or omeprazole Prilosec® , and H2 blockers, such as famotidine Pepcid® , cimetidine Tagamet® and ranitidine Zantac®. Not all pancreatic enzyme products require an acid-reducing medication for optimal activity. Talk to a doctor, dietitian or pharmacist for advice about whether or not an acid-reducing medication may be beneficial.

The most common side effect of pancreatic enzymes is constipation. Enzymes may also cause nausea, abdominal cramps or diarrhea, though these symptoms are less common. Discontinue the use of pancreatic enzymes if any signs of hypersensitivity or allergic reaction appear. Pancreatic enzymes may decrease the absorption of some iron salts.

Tell the doctor and registered dietitian about all current medications and medical conditions while discussing the use of pancreatic enzymes. If taken properly, pancreatic enzymes can help prevent weight loss and control symptoms associated with pancreatic enzyme insufficiency.

Ask the doctor to prescribe the proper pancreatic enzymes for you. For more information on pancreatic enzymes or for free, in-depth and personalized resources and information on pancreatic cancer, contact a PanCAN Patient Services Case Manager.

Good digestion therefore ensures sufficient enzyme formation and a better absorption of essential nutrients. The pancreas secretes three enzymes in the small intestine: amylase, protease and lipase.

Amylase digests carbohydrates such as starch from potatoes and pasta, but also from refined sugars. Proteases help the body to break down proteins from, for example, meat, fish and eggs into building blocks that are used to form and maintain body tissue. Lipases help the body break down fat and increase the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K.

Supplements can help balance your digestive system. Digestive enzymes support both your stomach and intestines. Therefore, the best choice is usually a complex of fat, protein and carbohydrate splitting enzymes. That way you support your entire digestion. Preferably choose a gluten- and cow's milk-free supplement, as these nutrients can interfere with digestion.

Take an enzyme supplement with water during or immediately after a meal. Golden Naturals Digestive Enzymes is an enzyme, herbal and probiotic preparation containing patented DigeZyme ® digestive enzymes such as amylase, lactase, cellulase, lipase and protease.

In addition, this product is enriched with probiotics. Functional Cookies are needed to make a website function better. These are, for example, files that keep you logged in or that keep track of what's in a shopping cart.

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When the pancreas does not produce enough enzymes to break down food, pancreatic enzyme products are needed. Doctors sometimes prescribe digestive enzymes, including pancreatic enzymes, to patients who have conditions that cause poor absorption.

These products help improve digestion and absorption of food. Some of the conditions that may cause pancreatic insufficiency include surgery Whipple procedure or total pancreatectomy , blockage or narrowing of the pancreatic or biliary duct the tubes that carry pancreatic juice or bile , pancreatic or duodenal tumors, cystic fibrosis or pancreatitis.

Patients with these symptoms should discuss with their medical team whether taking supplemental pancreatic enzymes may be beneficial for them. Other patients may need enzymes for a few months or years after surgery. Patients who have radiation therapy along with the Whipple procedure are much more likely to have long-term malabsorption.

Fat absorption usually does not return to normal in these patients even if they are taking enzyme replacement products. In this case, the goal is to eliminate diarrhea, restore adequate nutrition and prevent weight loss.

MCT Medium Chain Triglyceride oil may help control weight loss in patients with uncontrolled malabsorption. MCT oil is a calorie-rich type of fat that bypasses usual fat absorption and is rapidly absorbed by the body. It is found naturally in coconut oil, palm kernel oil and butter.

MCT oil is added to some medical nutritional supplements and can also be purchased alone as a nutritional supplement.

Use of oral nutritional supplements may promote weight gain, help increase strength and physical activity, and improve quality of life. For these patients, a combination of pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy, nutritional counseling and drainage of the bile duct can prevent weight loss and improve symptoms.

Pancreatic enzyme products are available in both prescription and non-prescription forms. The different brands of pancreatic enzyme products are not identical.

All prescription pancreatic enzyme products are regulated by the United States Food and Drug Administration FDA to ensure their effectiveness, safety and manufacturing consistency. Over-the-counter pancreatic enzyme supplements are available without a prescription.

Since they are classified as dietary supplements rather than drugs, the FDA does not control their production. While manufacturers of over-the-counter supplements are required to ensure the safety of their products, there are no controls on manufacturing consistency from one batch to the next.

Therefore, these products are not recommended for use in patients with pancreatic cancer. The recommended type and dosage of pancreatic enzymes must be individualized for each person. Most people should start off by taking 10, — 20, lipase units with snacks and 20, — 40, lipase units with meals.

Patients should not exceed 2, lipase units per kilogram of body weight per meal assuming 4 meals per day. For example, a person that weighs pounds 68kg could safely take up to , units of lipase at one meal.

Be sure to talk to your healthcare provider before taking a new supplement, especially if you have any underlying health conditions or are taking any medications. Additionally, note that you should always take digestive enzymes with food to maximize their effectiveness.

Most digestive enzymes contain a combination of protease, lipase, and amylase, but they may also contain other specific enzymes to promote healthy digestion. Supplements are derived from both animal-based and microbial sources. While digestive enzymes may not directly boost weight loss, research shows that enzyme inhibitors might.

Digestive enzyme inhibitors decrease the absorption of certain macronutrients and are sometimes used in the treatment of obesity to increase weight loss According to a review of 14 studies, supplementing with an amylase inhibitor extracted from white beans may increase both weight loss and fat loss in humans Another study showed that blocking the effects of trypsin , a protease enzyme that breaks down proteins, decreased food consumption and weight gain in rats Additionally, lipase inhibitors are used to reduce the absorption of fat, which could also result in significant weight loss 19 , It does this by decreasing the production of lipase in the stomach and pancreas, resulting in weight loss One study in 40 women with obesity also found that long-term use of orlistat increased levels of certain hormones that suppress hunger and appetite However, other studies have found that orlistat could decrease these hormones and instead speed up the emptying of the stomach 22 , 23 , Aside from potentially affecting hormone levels, other common side effects of lipase inhibitors include diarrhea, stomach pain, and fat in the stools Enzyme inhibitors block the activity of digestive enzymes, which could promote weight loss and fat loss.

However, studies have had contradicting results. Digestive enzymes are substances that help break down macronutrients into smaller compounds to promote their absorption. Some test-tube and animal studies show that they could improve the health of your gut microbiome , which may affect weight control.

On the other hand, digestive enzyme inhibitors have been shown to reduce food intake and increase weight loss and fat loss. While digestive enzyme supplements may or may not directly boost weight loss, they could promote healthy digestion and regularity, especially for those with certain gastrointestinal conditions.

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