Enzymes in Health & Illness - NCCG.ORG Ning Network Archive 2008-10

Enzymes in Health & Illness

by: Dr. Jeff Prystupa

Enzymes are the unsung heroes of the body. Enzymes control every function of every cell. I can not begin to adequately describe how important enzymes are to health. Chapter 7 of Enzymes: the Fountain of Life, by Drs. Lopez, Williams and Miehlke, states: “A person is ill. No matter what is wrong, the first thing to understand is that something is out of order with his or her enzymes. Had the pertinent enzymes succeeded in removing the causes of the health disturbance and maintained the body in the normal state of enzymatic balance, the person would not have become ill in the first place. For a long time, scientists have considered it logical that more enzymes of the required type and in the right quantity ought to be made available for almost every illness in order to end the disturbance in health. The new enzymes are needed in order to come to the aid of their weak, inferior, or perhaps even ailing enzyme colleagues-in-arms. European scientists have suggested that enzymes are important in disease prevention. Some feel that: ‘It is logical and sensible to take enzymes prophylactically (prevention) as well, in order to have the fighting troops ready when a danger to health and therefore an increased enzyme requirement would be likely, for threatening colds and flu, to sport’s injuries.’”

It is not uncommon on x-ray to see whole vitamin pills in the large intestine. Unfortunately for these patients, their digestion is to faulty, so incomplete, that they are not able to break down and digest the vitamins they are taking to get well or stay healthy. This is why I do not recommend any vitamins or minerals for my patients until I know that their digestion is adequate to the task of preparing what is ingested.

Eating good foods, prepared in a healthy way, even taking herbs, vitamins, minerals, etc., will not result in the desired benefits if the digestion is poor. Unless the stomach adequately prepares the food by breaking it down into the basic building blocks, it cannot be absorbed in the small intestine.

If the stomach does not enzymatically digest the food, and deliver it in an absorbable form to the small intestine, then a process of bacterial fermentation takes place. Everyone is aware of the personal and social discomfort that results from bacterial fermentation in the small and large intestine (farts).

Signs and symptoms of faulty and incomplete digestion:

* Feeling weak and tired. Food not getting broken down to feed the energy pathways.

* Getting sick often. Weak immune system.

* Allergies. The body reacting to ‘foreign’ proteins.

* Belching. Bloating. Heartburn. Gas. Flatulence.

* Constipation or Diarrhea. Both can result from improper digestion.

* Osteoporosis. Not able to draw minerals from food.

* Cravings. Sugar and chocolate.

* Headaches. Toxicity and/or fluctuating blood sugar levels.

* Degenerative or wasting type diseases.

* Candida, yeast, PMS. These are implicated in poor carbohydrate digestion.

Recent studies have demonstrated that 85% of people over 40 have impaired protein digestion. The production of hydrochloric acid is necessary for the activation of pepsin - the enzyme required for almost all protein digestion. Media portrays indigestion as a result of too much acid when just the opposite is true. When one takes the little ‘antacid’ pill, it serves as a negative feedback signal to the cells of the stomach. The stomach then releases the enzymes which digest the meal.

Dr. Jeff’s Most Important Health Tips:

Tip #1 - A major spoiler of a good healthy and nutritious meal is a sugary dessert. Foods digest at different rates due to their molecular structure. Sugars, by far, are the easiest to digest. Therefore, do not eat sugar with more complex, harder-to-digest food. For more information about this, read: Sugar and Sour Digestion.

Tip #2 - Good digestion requires good enzymes. When food is cooked above 106 degrees F, the enzymes are dismantled and inactivated. Therefore, modern man trades sanitation for digestability. It is now simply necessary to periodically restore enzyme potential and to occasionally add some power to the stomach’s enzyme capacity. I have personally tried most enzyme formulas available. My recommendation is a Standard Process product called Zypan. It has all the necessary components for full enzymatic function. Zypan is also the least expensive enzyme formula. Another product called Multizyme, also from Standard Process is available as a sort of Enzyme 101, for those very few (1-2%) who find the Zypan a little too strong. Here is the protocol: Adults: With meals, take two Zypan as if it were the last forkful of food and then drink about 6-8 ounces of water. Snacks do not usually require enzymes. Pizza is not a snack! Large adults 200+ pounds can take three Zypan.
Kids: can take one Zypan up to age ten and then they can take two. For babies, crush Zypan between two spoons and deliver (¼ to ½) pill with Applesauce or Yogurt or something as a delivery system. Great for colic, snotty noses, colds, general ‘yuckiness.’ Nursing Moms, contact me for additional help.

Tip #3 - Enzymes build immunity. The immune system is an enzyme system. It is possible to build immune capacity by taking enzymes whenever the need is felt to strengthen the immune system. How does one know when to take enzymes to build immunity? This could be done every month, by taking 2-3 Zypan at bedtime for 3-4 days. By taking enzymes on an empty stomach, the enzyme capacity can be transferred to the blood. Cleansing and detoxifying will result.

In addition, I have found nothing that can compare to Zypan for dealing with the flu. The flu is caused by a virus, which is a small piece of genetic material that invades and takes over our own cells. Enzymes seem to digest the virus, a small protein-like chain of foreign amino acids. With the flu, there is nothing to actually kill, as in a bacterial infection. This is why the flu causes a mild temperature elevation and a general lousy feeling, whereas a bacteria causes a full-blown immune response with a high fever. The strategy is: Digest the bugs before they digest us!

At the first sign that you are getting sick, as soon as you get that scratch in the back of your throat, that characteristic ache, that pressure in the sinus, the ear ache, whatever it is that your body has taught you, warned you, that you are coming down with something - right then - do not wait - take 2-3 Zypan with a large glass of water and repeat this every two to three hours and especially at bedtime. You will not get sicker than you were when you started this emergency stop-gap enzyme protocol.

Use this on the kids, when you first hear that wet throat sound, that cough, that sniffle, if you will recognize that first subtle signal, then you can prevent the kids from getting sick. Zypan is truly the most effective remedy for the widest range of problems I have employed. Always drink 6-8 ounces of water with enzymes. When traveling, never leave home without the Zypan, especially if you are going to foreign countries. Whenever you eat or drink anything, take Zypan as directed. It is a good idea to take a couple more at bedtime. This insures against gastric surprises and/or Montezuma’s Revenge.

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