Break it down so you don't BREAK DOWN!

HEALTH, February 2008, by Dr. Jay


Break it down
so you don’t
BREAK DOWN!


What’s alive, but you can’t see them,
can be eaten but is also made in our bodies?…ENZYMES!


It’s Alive!
Enzymes are the really important parts of our living cells that we need to help us digest and break down food. They help to release the nutrients and separate the waste. Without them we wouldn’t survive.

Some are already being produced in our bodies and others are found in the foods we eat (SOME foods). Ever notice how an apple turns brown if you leave it on the counter? That’s enzymes at work… that food is LIVING! Cool huh?

Nature Intended It
We actually need more enzymes than our body produces. That’s why nature was so clever to put them in the healthy foods we eat, not figuring we’d be eating all kinds of packaged, processed, irradiated, DEAD FOODS. Those foods don’t have enzymes, so they’re non-living and require our bodies to do a lot more work to try digesting and eliminating the waste. Our bodies were made to count on the enzymes in the natural foods we eat: fruits and vegetables, fish and meats that aren’t over-cooked.

Start Chomping!
The good news is we can choose more of these enzyme-rich foods in our diets. Did you know that there are enzymes in saliva? A great way to consciously aid in digestion is properly chewing our food. When we chew, we allow those enzymes to start breaking down food before it reaches our stomachs. The act of chewing itself helps to break down the size of the bites we take so that swallowing and digestion are easier.
 
Here’s the bad news…
It turns out that cooking food is a sure way to kill those important enzymes.They are no longer useful to our bodies and cannot help digest and break our food down. Most of those packaged foods I mentioned (things you find in the grocery store that are pre-made, pre-cooked, processed, pasteurized, etc.) have had the enzymes destroyed in them through processing and packaging. We get very few nutrients from these foods. Our bodies struggle to break them down and then we use up our internal supply of enzymes instead of the ones that nature intended to be in our foods (before they were cooked or packaged). Can you say CONSTIPATION?

Raw Foods
Now I’m not saying that you have to start eating everything raw… you all know that balance is key. But there are some foods that are better eaten raw, every day, that will give your body a fighting chance to keep you healthy. The more raw fruits and vegetables you can eat, the better off you will be. If you can include some raw fruit with your breakfast, and as many raw veggies as you can with lunch and dinner, you’ll be well ahead of the game of staying healthy! You’ll know you’re eating more enzymes and digesting better when you have 2-3 easy-moving bowel movements a day. Less than that is unhealthy.

Some Tips:
1. Ask your parents to buy more fresh fruits and veggies.
2. Eat them instead of  packaged snacks.
3. Ask the person who does the cooking at your house if they would serve raw veggies or just partially steamed veggies instead of boiled or cooked.
4. Make up cool salad recipes. Include things like cheese, apple or orange slices, nuts, sunflower seeds, peppers, cabbage, other favourite veggies or berries to spice them up!
5. Chew, chew, chew! Try not to swallow until your food feels like paste in your mouth.

The Time is Now
Don’t wait until your Doctor tells you that you MUST change your diet or risk getting very sick. Starting now at your age will make the habit easier and will keep you looking young and healthy.

Here’s a great article you can read about enzymes that goes into much more detail than I just did: ENZYMES

Happy reading!

~ Dr. Jay


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