ENZYMes
“Enzymes are the substances that make life possible. They are necessary for all the chemical reactions that take place in the human body. No minerals, vitamins or hormones can perform their function without enzymes. Our bodies, all our organs, tissues and cells function because of enzymes.” Enzymes are biocatalysts that are classified as proteins in terms of chemical composition. In cells, enzymes are either free in the cytoplasm or bound to cellular structures (membranes). They require a certain optimum temperature (usually 37°C) and a mostly neutral environment for their action. However, some gastric enzymes are also active in strongly acidic environments. At higher temperatures and in the presence of heavy metals (lead, mercury, etc.), the enzymes become degraded. There are several thousand known enzymes.The most important enzymes are pepsin, which is found in gastric juice. Together with trypsin, a pancreatic enzyme, it breaks down proteins present in digestion to amino acids. Lipases are enzymes involved in the breakdown of various fats.
Dr. Howell, ENZYME NUTRITION – (Dr. Edward Howell was involved in the discovery and study of enzymes. He is a leader in the research of enzymes in the human diet and their action)The discovery of enzymes came only after the discovery of the role of vitamins and later minerals in nutrition in the early twentieth century. In 1930, only 30 enzymes had been described. 40 years later it was well over 1000. If we think of carbohydrates, fats, minerals and other substances in our bodies as building materials, enzymes represent the millions of workers who are able to build organic matter and ensure its functionality. Enzymes enter into reactions that create more complex substances from simpler ones, or vice versa. Enzymes are very sensitive to heat. They are more active at higher temperatures (the sick body therefore increases its temperature, activating enzymes and speeding up the body’s regeneration), but if the temperature exceeds 45°C, they are all completely DESTROYED! This is exactly what happens when we heat-treat our food, which turns into dead matter. How can dead food nourish our body!
WHY ARE ENZYMES IN FOOD SO IMPORTANT?
One of the main functions of enzymes in the body is to participate in digestion. Enzymes break down the individual components of food (sugars, fats, proteins) into simpler parts that are then used to build the body or as a source of energy. Our body is able to excrete all kinds of enzymes needed to digest ingested food during digestion, regardless of whether it is raw food, which still contains enzymes, or cooked food, without enzymes of its own. Yet there is a big difference in the digestion of raw and cooked food and its consequences. How so? Every part of the diet, whether it is a fruit, a seed or a leaf has in its raw state a complete content of enzymes that are able to break down its individual components. For example, an unripe banana is not sweet, it does not yet contain simple sugars. But if left at room temperature, the enzyme amylase breaks down the stored starches into sugars within a few days, the banana softens and becomes sweet. Many other fruits do the same thing, but with different enzymes. When we eat food that is raw – it is alive, the enzymes in it have not been destroyed by temperatures above 45°C, chewing breaks down the cellular structure and the enzymes mix with the entire contents. The digestion of the nutrients thus begins in our mouths. The process then continues in the digestive tract, where the enzymes secreted by the body are added. This is how all animals in nature take in food, and it’s how humans have taken in food for thousands of years.
Until they started cooking their food. To digest cooked food, the body must supply all the enzymes itself. Digestion thus only begins when the food is mixed with the secreted enzymes in the stomach (the enzymes that break down sugars are already secreted in the mouth). The body thus has to produce excessive amounts of enzymes and this has its consequences. Humans have a much higher content of enzymes in their digestive juices than wild animals, which is related to their increased secretion. The body simply has to replace what humans destroy in pots, ovens and pans. Thus, the body has to put extra energy into enzyme production as well as the nutrients needed to produce enzymes. Thus we are unnecessarily depriving ourselves of certain minerals. Above all, the enzyme-secreting glands are overworked. It has been found that the pancreas of humans and animals eating a diet without enzymes (cooked food) is up to several times larger than it should be. It should be remembered that in addition to digestive enzymes, the body also needs metabolic enzymes, which are essential for its function. If the body is forced to devote itself excessively to the production of digestive enzymes, it will inevitably do so at the expense of metabolic enzymes, which will begin to diminish over time. The consequences of any deficiency of such crucial elements of metabolism are easy to surmise. As Dr. Howell writes in his book ENZYME NUTRITION, the negative effect is not immediately apparent, but problems usually begin to appear as we grow older, when the body can no longer cope with the constant load and, in addition, a lack of quality nutrients becomes apparent due to the consumption of denatured foods. The consequences are obvious: premature exhaustion, fatigue, obesity, high susceptibility to disease, general decrepitude and premature death.