Food Enzymes
Food enzymes are a type of enzyme, which is active in raw food. Even though the body doesn’t produce them, they’re beneficial to the digestive system.
All raw fruits and vegetables contain the necessary enzymes to break down the carbohydrates, proteins and fats found in that particular food. This lessens the burden on our digestive system. The raw food contains just the amount of enzyme needed to digest itself and the enzymes can’t be stored by your body. When we cook or process food it destroys the enzymes and they’re no longer useful in digestion.
The difference between raw or live food and dead food is the enzyme activity in the food. Take two seeds and boil one. The unboiled seed will sprout because nature gave it enzymes and they are still intact. The boiled seed is dead because there are no enzymes left . Just like the boiled seed the enzymes are destroyed in foods, which have been
- Canned
- Baked
- Roasted
- Stewed
- Fried
- Pasteurized
- Microwaved
- Processed
- Refined
When live food comes in contact with heated water the enzymes are destroyed quite rapidly. Long heating at 48 degrees Celsius (118.4 degrees Fahrenheit) or short heating at 65 degrees Celsius (149 degrees Fahrenheit). Heating at 60 degrees Celsius (140 degrees Fahrenheit) to 80 degrees Celsius (176 degrees Fahrenheit) for one-half hour completely destroys all enzymes.
Enzymes and Energy
In the process of digestion between 60 to 80 percent of your body’s energy is used by your digestive system. That only leaves 20 to 40 percent for all the other systems of your body – cardiovascular, nervous, muscular, respiratory, immune and reproductive. It takes hours to days to completely digest one day’s meal. If we eat three meals a day then our body basically is in a constant state of digestion. Since digestion consumes the most energy then it is logical that changing food intake or the demand put on the digestive system will make a huge change on your overall health, either good or bad.
If something is not right in one of the other systems the body is capable of handling the problem, but it must have extra energy to do so. That extra energy most likely will come from the digestive system. That is why symptoms such as indigestion, acid reflux, gas, or bloating are indicative that something is wrong in our body. I bet that has never even crossed your mind.
That is a logical and important reason to use enzymes to enhance your digestion and prevent or overcome a health issue. By freeing up energy you can improve your overall health. It is important to understand how important digestive enzymes can be to this overall health.
Enzymes and Juicing
In 1948, Jay Kordich contracted bladder cancer at the age of twenty-five. He was a football star at the University of Southern California. Kordich traveled across the United States to New York City to be treated by Dr. Gerson, who prescribed to him an all-juice diet. The result was that Jay’s life took a drastic turn for the better within only three
In 1989, Kordich started his national television career, making appearances with his juicer. By the end of 1990, Jay Kordich and juicing were widely known. His infomercials aired for over thirteen years and he used the Juiceman name for his own line of juicers. The Juiceman line of juicers is now being distributed by Salton Inc. and is no longer endorsed by Jay Kordich. Kordich announced that he would soon be endorsing a new juicer called “The Juice Daddy” extractor.
Also, in the 1950s and 1960s, Norman Walker , a naturopathic physician, was considered the guru of juicing as he helped thousands of people regain their health through juicing.
Drinking juice puts very little stress on the digestive tract because it’s easy to absorb and the juice’s nutrients enter the bloodstream within minutes. This is in comparison to the hours it takes to digest a normal meal and then only small amounts of nutrients are available to the body. In addition, most of the food eaten is usually cooked, which destroys about 50% of the amino acids, a big percentage of the minerals and all of the enzymes if the food is cooked over 121 degrees Fahrenheit.
By drinking juice the body is receiving fresh, uncooked food in an easy to digest form. This makes a huge difference to the immune system and is a safe way to cleanse the body and rebuild and balance it.