Understanding the Human Digestive System
Part 1: Don't Dine without Enzymes.

Hello and welcome back to our Journey to Better Nutrition

In this discussion we deepen our knowledge and experience about how nutrition works inside the human body. This will lead us naturally and organically into a conversation about how the Simplexity nutrition products work inside the human body. The main purpose behind this and all our nutrition conversations is to assist you in experiencing optimum product benefits and results. And all of this is designed to be an integral part of your enthusiastic commitment to creating a healthier diet and lifestyle.

"Biology will be to the 21st century what physics and chemistry were to the 20th century…The main area of interest will be the production of enzymes, or living catalysts, which will act in the same way as chemical catalysts."

-John Naisbitt, Megatrends (1992)

Most of us have had the experience of imagining a favorite food, whether at home, at the office, or in the car…and that favorite food is at least a few hours away from being bought, prepared, and eaten.

It doesn't matter. A few seconds into clearly imagining one of our favorite foods we notice that a certain amount of extra moisture permeates our mouth. We are salivating. Some smell or some memory or image in our brain has triggered a biochemical reaction in our belly and throughout our entire gastrointestinal system. We may even feel and hear a distant grumbling noise or two. What is happening is one of the many miracles of a healthy human body. The miracle of digestion has begun.

The moment the body gets the message (either real or imagined) that food is coming, a whole series of biochemical reactions are triggered and the miracle of human digestion begins. Digestive enzymes are released into our saliva that are capable of breaking down the carbohydrate portion of our foods, namely fruits, grains, and vegetables. Hydrochloric acid (HCL) and the digestive enzyme protease are secreted through the delicate mucous lining of the stomach. Protease is secreted to break down the protein portion of foods (beans, legumes, fish, chicken, beef, etc.) and HCL is released to sterilize and disinfect our foods from pathogenic bacteria, viruses, and parasites. At the same time, the liver and pancreas are busy generating additional digestive enzymes and bile salts that are capable of emulsifying the fatty portion of foods. These enzymes are sent to the gall bladder, which rations out these materials as the various food combinations leave the stomach and enter the duodenum. And this is just the very beginning of the process of human digestion.

Of course, this is how things work in a healthy human body, under ideal circumstances and conditions. But as we've already mentioned, we are no longer living in the proverbial Garden of Eden.

Living in the modern world of endless technological innovation and distraction has produced unique forms of stress. These all-pervasive stress factors have contributed to a variety of negative impacts on human physiology and health that are simply unprecedented in the history of humanity.

There are at least two dominant stress factors that contribute to all the many insults that negatively impact our desire and ability to create healthier diets and lifestyles.

1. A radically altered food supply: There are two major components of the stress factor we are calling a radically altered food supply: 1. How we grow, harvest, process, and distribute our foods, and 2. How we select, prepare (cook), and consume (digest) our foods.
2. A toxic environment: Toxic chemicals used in agriculture, industry, technology, and even in our own homes and gardens contribute to the poisoning of our local, regional, and global ecosystems, including all of our food, water, and air. The magnitude of this subject requires additional information and conversation. We provide more on this subject in chapters 5, 6, and 8 of The Journey to Better Nutrition.

These two stress factors--a radically altered food supply and a toxic environment--create conditions which interfere with and disrupt all of the normal biological functions inside the human body. One of the results of these stress factors is widespread nutritional deficiencies. And they are more prevalent than most of us realize. When our cells lack the micronutrients necessary to do their various metabolic tasks, these tasks simply do not get done. When our cells don't work properly, our organs don't work properly, and then our systems (digestive, cardiovascular, etc.) don't work properly either. The myriad symptoms of acute and chronic discomfort and dis-ease have part of their root cause right here, with micronutrient deficiencies.The biological buck starts and stops with our magnificent cells, which depend entirely on the quality of our food, water, and air supplies. But this is only one side of the proverbial coin.

The other side of the coin

The other side of the coin, a toxic environment, introduces completely non-nutrient substances into our bodies and into our cellular structures. Under ideal circumstances, the normal cellular detoxification pathways (see Each Cell is a Factory) can quickly identify, neutralize, and eliminate any and all toxic foreign invaders. This internal cellular protection mechanism is part of every cell in our body. This internal protection mechanism is one aspect of our magnificent immune system. There is more information on this important topic of an altered food supply and a toxic environment in chapters 5, 6, and 8 of The Journey to Better Nutrition.

The cellular component and metabolic co-factor responsible for this magnificent internal cellular protection is called an enzyme.

When the internal metabolic enzymes cannot do their job, it's bad enough. But complicating matters even further is the presence of toxic co-factors, which cause additional stress and strain to an already underachieving body. Inside our body, every function is connected and interdependent, but perhaps no one factor is more important to our overall health and well-being than enzymes.

"The enzymes catalyze specific reactions of chemicals, either to create structure through molecular assemblies or to provide the electrochemical fire to run the cellular engines and ultimately keep the entire system working."

-Richard Gerber, M.D.

Our resident enzyme expert and author of the booklet Don't Dine Without Enzymes, Victoras Kulvinskas, describes enzymes this way (paraphrased here in the next three paragraphs):

The word "enzyme" comes from the Greek word "enzymas" which means "to ferment" or "to cause a change." Enzymes are catalysts for all biochemical reactions and are necessary components for all biological life. Without enzymes, what we call "biological life" would simply not exist as we normally recognize it. Enzymes are the foundation for all cell regeneration. Enzymes play a key role in the transformation of undigested food into the micronutrients that are absorbed at the cellular level. With the proper balance of enzymes, we have the energy to participate in the dance of living.

An enzyme is a specialized protein-like structure which carries with it an electromagnetic or "energetic" charge. Enzymes speed up chemical reactions that normally take place very slowly or not at all. It is this "energetic component" behind the protein-like structure that makes enzymes different from other protein-based substances. It is this energetic life principle, sometimes called "prana" or "ch'i" (or "life-force") that animates all life forms.

The father of modern enzyme therapy, Dr. Edward Howell, once said that enzymes emit a kind of radiation that can be picked up on Kirlian photographs. Howell can be singled out from other researchers because he stressed that enzymes are not merely expendable protein-based chemical catalysts that move along various chemical reactions. He forcefully argued that enzymes are none other than units of life-energy that use various protein molecules as their carriers.

Types of Enzymes

There are three primary types of enzymes:

1. Metabolic Enzymes: This type of enzyme exists throughout the body and requires nutrient co-factors in order to function as described earlier. Metabolic enzymes are involved in every biochemical reaction in every cell, organ, and system of our body. No metabolic activity would happen anywhere in the body without the presence of metabolic enzymes. Without metabolic enzymes we would not be alive…period.

2. Food Enzymes: In its infinite wisdom, nature recognizes the value and importance of enzymes and therefore makes sure that every edible seed, grain, sprout, fruit, bean, and vegetable contains its very own internal bank of enzymes. These are called endogenous enzymes. Endogenous enzymes found within the food itself are capable of completely breaking down the food in question and thereby releasing vital micronutrients for digestion, absorption, and assimilation into our cells. There are two vitally important and very big "ifs". The first big if is this: If the food enzymes are still there. Food enzymes are extremely sensitive and can be destroyed long before you eat the food in question (due to harvesting, processing, and transport methods), or immediately before you eat the food due to improper cooking (and this means over-cooking). Overcooking of plant-based foods destroys the active enzymes in those foods.

   The second big if is this: If you chew your food properly. Proper chewing mechanically tears open the whole food fibers and releases the endogenous "bank" of food enzymes contained within the food itself. Proper chewing also stimulates the increased production of our own digestive enzymes. The more you chew, the more saliva you produce. Saliva contains the enzyme salivary amylase, which breaks down carbohydrates. If carbohydrates, especially complex carbohydrates like corn, seeds, nuts, and whole grains, are not properly digested in the mouth, they do not get broken down anywhere else. Almost everyone has had the experience of eating corn-on-the-cob and then seeing evidence of incomplete digestion in the toilet bowl the next day. Unless that whole kernel of corn is completely mashed and gnashed between our teeth and effectively mixed with enzyme-rich saliva, it will pass through the entire thirty-foot long tube of our digestive system completely intact.

3. Digestive Enzymes: These are the digestive enzymes produced within our own body. The most common are protease (which breaks down protein), amylase (which breaks down carbohydrates), and lipase (which breaks down fats or lipids). If the body is properly nourished and not assaulted on a daily basis by various environmental toxins and other stress factors, it is fully capable of producing the necessary digestive enzymes for breaking down all of our food as long as we help out by cooking our food properly, not eating too much, and chewing each mouthful completely. But not everyone helps out all the time, and so there is a growing need to understand the role that supplemental digestive enzymes can play in helping us achieve our goals for better health through better nutrition practices.

Why are supplemental digestive enzymes necessary?

Supplemental digestive enzymes (such as Simplexity Health's SBG Zymes and SBG Zymes Plus) are necessary because of all the reasons explained previously. To summarize briefly:

1. Nutrient-deficient and therefore enzyme-deficient food supplies
2. A toxic environment that produces relatively toxic food supplies
3. Improper cooking and preparation methods (overcooking, microwave ovens, etc)
4. Improper chewing techniques (wolfing down food works great…but only if you are a wolf!)
5. Millions of other stress factors in our modern diets and lifestyles: antibiotics, alcohol, caffeine, food additives, overwork, lack of sleep, etc.

These stress factors leave people overfed, undernourished, stressed out, toxic, overwhelmed…and with bodies that are less and less capable of normal functioning.

Supplemental digestive enzymes provide the necessary biochemical assistance in order for all consumed foods to be thoroughly broken down and liquefied. This helps to restore normal digestive system function. Only in this liquid state can the next and very important stages of absorption and assimilation of nutrients occur. These next two stages are discussed in chapters 3 and 4 of The Journey to Better Nutrition.

Why is complete digestion of our foods so important?

One of the primary reasons to eat any food is to make a full spectrum of vital micronutrients available to the cells of our body. This is possible only through the elaborate biochemical process of complete digestion, including the assistance of digestive enzymes. Incomplete digestion of food is one of the root causes of all bodily discomfort, and is partly responsible for the full range of acute and chronic dis-ease symptoms. This important realization will become more relevant and clear as we continue our Journey to Better Nutrition in the days and weeks ahead.

Why is variety in our food selections so important?

The primary reason to eat a variety of foods is to make sure we are making available to our cells all of the essential micronutrients they contain. The bad news is that accomplishing this feat without the help of dietary supplements is virtually impossible. The good news is this: Gram for gram the most nutrient-rich food on earth, naturally containing a balanced synergy of the broadest spectrum of all available micronutrients is Simplexity Health's Super Blue Green Algae. By adding Super Blue Green Algae to our digestive enzyme products, we have created the most nutrient-rich and most enzymatically active product in the marketplace today.

Remember…Enzymes Work.

"There is no other mechanism in the body except enzyme action to protect the body from any hazard. It is ambiguous to say that 'nature cures' when we must know that the only machinery in the body capable of doing anything is enzyme activity. Hormones do not 'work.' Vitamins do not 'work.' Minerals do not 'work.' Proteins do not 'work.' Enzymes, and only enzymes, 'work.' The ability of the body to make any of the numerous enzymes needed for good health and long life must be kept at a high level by the methods incorporated in the Food Enzyme Concept."
- Dr. Edward Howell, Enzyme Nutrition

"Many researchers now believe that the aging process is the result of the slowing down and gradual disorganization of various enzyme activities. Might it eventually be possible to restore youthful patterns of activity by supplying those enzymes that are deficient in the diet?"
R. Ratcliff, M.D., Today's Health (published by the AMA, 1960)

As you can see, enzymes in general and digestive enzymes in particular are some of the most essential ingredients in our Journey to Better Nutrition.

Remember…Don't Dine Without Enzymes!

Action Steps for Chapter 2!

1. Learn more about Simplexity Health's digestive enzyme products.
2. Read Enzyme Logic in Dollars & Sense.
3. Fill out your Weekly Benefits Chart.
4. Identify an insulting habit in your diet or lifestyle and minimize its impact. You could eliminate the insult altogether or simply modify it. Just try it one day at a time, for one week, and see if you notice improvements in your health and energy. Review the Habits of Naturally Healthy People for ideas and suggestions.