Constipation… diarrhea… bloating… gas. No one likes to talk about it, but the truth is digestive trouble is one of the most common complaints, whether it involves an annoyance like excessive flatulence or a more serious gastrointestinal tract (GI) condition. In fact, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), colitis and other chronic gastrointestinal disorders affect more Americans than cancer and heart disease combined.1 And yet, as widespread as chronic digestive disorders are, the key to supporting the health of people who suffer from them involves recognizing two of the potential culprits behind poor intestinal function: a low supply of digestive enzymes by the pancreas and a dangerous imbalance of essential GI-health-promoting, "friendly" colon bacteria.
Smooth digestion hinges on the sequential production of a variety of digestive enzymes. First, you have the enzyme amylase, which is responsible for breaking down starch. Not surprisingly, type 1 diabetics are known to have a higher incidence of blood amylase deficiency-and experimental animals fed a vegetarian diet low in tryptophan (an amino acid abundant in protein-rich food) were lacking in this important enzyme indicating that vegetarians may also have a similar deficiency.2-3
Protease, on the other hand, is responsible for severing peptide bonds in dietary proteins, allowing your body to make use of the amino acids they contain. Research indicates that, among animals subsisting on grain- and soy-based diets, protease supplementation can improve both nutrient utilization and growth performance.4 Lipases, as the name suggests, break down fats-and a study of HIV-infected patients suffering from fat malabsorption showed that lipase enzyme combinations can relieve gas, pressure, nausea and post-meal pain in the stomach in up to 96 percent of subjects.5 Meanwhile, lactase digests milk-based sugar (lactose), and cellulase breaks down plant-based foods.
If you find yourself struggling with digestive disorders on a regular basis, pre-meal supplementation with a blend of digestive enzymes may prove to provide you with significant benefits.
The other piece of this distressing puzzle, however, calls for a healthy ratio of probiotic ("friendly") bacteria to the putrefactive or potentially harmful bacteria in your digestive tract-a balance that you can achieve by supplementing with probiotics like Lactobacillus GG (available here as Culturelle). While common factors such as poor diet and antibiotic use can promote disruptions in the ecological balance of the bacterial population in your gut, extensive research has shown that supplementation with probiotics can reduce the risk of some complications (such as antibiotic-associated diarrhea) while helping to maintain remission of others (such as ulcerative colitis).6-7
Of course, Lactobacillus GG doesn’t just replenish "friendly" bacteria in your digestive tract-it also fends off dangerous strains, including H. pylori and potentially deadly strains of pathogenic E. coli. Research shows that regular probiotic use fosters lower levels of H. pylori in the upper small intestine/duodenum, and in some cases, may even help to eradicate it-while in vitro studies suggest that Lactobacilli not only reduce the presence of pathogenic E. coli in the colon, but also help to block it from adhering to the cells that line the colon.8-10
In combination, both supplements – Digestive Enzymes and Culturelle – form the cornerstones of any successful, daily digestive health protocol. And you can find them both available now from Vitamin Research Products.
References:
1. Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center. JHBMC: Motility and Digestive Disorders: Statistic. Available from: .
2. Swislocki A, Noth R, Hallstone A, Kyger E, Triadafilopoulos G. Secretin-stimulated amylase release into blood is impaired in type 1 diabetes mellitus. Horm Metab Res. 2005 May;37(5):326-30.
3. Kushak RI, Drapeau C, Winter HS. Pancreatic and intestinal enzyme activities in rats in response to balanced and unbalanced plant diets. Plant Foods Hum Nutr. 2002 Fall;57(3-4):245-55.
4. Omogbenigun FO, Nyachoti CM, Slominski BA. Dietary supplementation with multienzyme preparations improves nutrient utilization and growth performance in weaned pigs. J Anim Sci. 2004 Apr;82(4):1053-61.
5. Carroccio A, Guarino A, Zuin G, Verghi F, Berni Canani R, Fontana M, Bruzzese E, Montalto G, Notarbartolo A. Efficacy of oral pancreatic enzyme therapy for the treatment of fat malabsorption in HIV-infected patients. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2001 Oct;15(10):1619-25.
6. Szajewska H, Ruszczynski M, Radzikowski A. Probiotics in the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea in children: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. J Pediatr. 2006 Sep;149(3):367-372.
7. Zocco MA, dal Verme LZ, Cremonini F, Piscaglia AC, Nista EC, Candelli M, Novi M, Rigante D, Cazzato IA, Ojetti V, Armuzzi A, Gasbarrini G, Gasbarrini A. Efficacy of Lactobacillus GG in maintaining remission of ulcerative colitis. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2006 Jun 1;23(11):1567-74.
8. Hamilton-Miller JM. The role of probiotics in the treatment and prevention of Helicobacter pylori infection. Int J Antimicrob Agents 2003 Oct;22(4):360-6.
9. Gotteland M, Brunser O, Cruchet S. Systematic review: are probiotics useful in controlling gastric colonization by Helicobacter pylori? Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2006 Apr 15;23(8):1077-86.
10. Horosova K, Bujnakova D, Kmet V. Effect of lactobacilli on E. coli adhesion to Caco-2 cells in vitro. Folia Microbiol (Praha). 2006;51(4):281-2.