One of my all-time favorite books, A Mind of your Own by Kelly Brogan (I cannot stress enough how life changing this book is! Her link is above in the menu), she has a whole chapter on the supplements she recommends for various illnesses including, thyroid issues, blood sugar issues, leaky gut, weaning off of anti-anxiety drugs and anti-depressants, even hormone imbalances. She recommended taking digestive enzymes for leaky gut and at the time I skipped passed it because I figured I didn’t need it because my stomach never gave me issues. Just because you don’t experience extreme bouts of diarrhea, constipation, gas or bloating doesn’t mean you don’t have leaky gut!!! I have allergies, asthma, and eczema and that is linked to leaky gut so don’t underestimate the guts effect on the rest of your body. So just recently almost a year and a half after reading A Mind of your Own, the universe placed a bottle of digestive enzymes on sale at my favorite grocery store, Lucky’s Market, they have a killer awesome supplement section!! I’ve been taking them every day for a week and I’ve got to say my digestion and BMs have been on point and I’ve even noticed that my allergies have remained relatively calm in the pollen storm compared to past years!
So as I educate myself more on digestive enzymes, I would
also like to share this information with you because gut health is very
important for mental health, the gut and the brain are in constant
bi-directional communication with each other via the gut-brain axis. Leaky gut,
inflammation, an off balance microbiome have all been linked to mental
illnesses, including anxiety and depression. Fun fact, 85% of serotonin is
created in the gut so if you want to get rid of the anxiety, panic attacks,
depression, chronic pain, fatigue, etc., begin fixing your gut! I recommend
following the Holistic Psychologist in the menu above, she has a fantastic Instagram
page, which is so educating, informative and enlightening, she really gives her
followers her all and she helps a lot of people with what she’s spreading, she
is a great light worker!!
So digestive enzymes, who needs them and what are they? If
you have acid reflux, IBS, hypochlorhydria (low stomach acid), thyroid issues, heartburn
and indigestion, brain fog, mood swings, chronic headaches or migraines, PMS, crave
sugars or carbs, hair loss, or Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis,
digestive enzymes might be something to consider to implement in your daily
routine. These symptoms are messages your body is sending you to give it some
assistance, something is off balance, most likely inflammation is occurring, so
treat yo self to adding additional enzymes to start bringing your body into
equilibrium. This is just one step in the healing process, there are many other
factors that go into healing the gut, which our bodies can heal in 1 week if a
strict diet is followed and the microbiome is restored with probiotics! (Look
into the whole30 or the paleo diet to start your journey!)
Digestion of food to micro and macronutrients begins in our mouth. Enzymes are a catalyst for a chemical reaction so the minute we start chewing food, our saliva releases amylases which break down starches or complex carbohydrates into simple sugars, the pancreas release lipases which break down fats to fatty acids and cholesterol, and then the proteases and peptidases break down proteins to amino acids. This process allows our bodies to absorb nutrients from the foods we eat and turn that into energy, so when we lack these essential enzymes, we need to supplement. In addition to the enzymes I mentioned, the following are also found in our body: pepsin breaks down protein into polypeptides, trypsin and chymotrypsin are endopeptidases that further break down polypeptides. Exopeptidase, carboxypeptidase, and aminopeptidase release the amino acids. Cellulase digests foods high in fiber, lactase breaks down lactose into glucose and galactose. Sucrase and invertase splits sucrose into glucose and fructose, and maltase breaks down maltose into smaller glucose molecules. Glucoamylase and alpha-glactosidase are enzymes that break down the “hidden” sugars and starches (carbs) found in processed foods and dairy.
When shopping for digestive enzymes find one with a blend of
different kinds, the more you supply your body the better off you are. You can
also give your body digestive enzymes naturally with the following foods, pineapple
and papaya contains the protease enzymes bromelain and papain, respectively.
Ginger, avocado, raw honey, mango, bananas, kiwi, kefir, sauerkraut and kimchi
also all have a variety of enzymes as well. For overall wellness, it’s good to
implement the rainbow of fruits and vegetables in the daily diet, not only are
they high vibration foods but they also contain minerals and vitamins that we
need for optimal health.
Happy Sunday self healers have a wonderful week!
Health Energy 