Many people often wonder if digestive enzymes help with weight loss. Well, you may know digestive enzymes to support healthy digestion and nutrient absorption. But science has looked beyond just breaking down food and researched on the potential of these enzymes to support weight loss.
In this article, we shall be showing you what science discovered about digestive enzymes in relation to weight loss.
Before then, let’s introduce what digestive enzymes mean.
What are Digestive Enzymes?
Digestive enzymes are protein compounds that play a role in the breakdown of food into absorbable forms.
You may follow a healthy, balanced diet with whole foods, including veggies, fruits, fatty fish and more. But if your body cannot digest these foods well, then a healthy diet means nothing; you may suffer bloating, nausea, lack of energy and lethargy. That’s where digestive enzymes come into play.
The body produces digestive enzymes naturally. The small intestine, pancreas and salivary glands are mainly involved in enzyme production, and the common types include:
- Protease, which breaks down protein into amino acid
- Amylase, which breaks down starches and carbs into simple sugars
- Lipase, which breaks down lipids into fatty acids and glycerol
As you can see, these different types of enzymes create different chemical reactions with different food types. So you actually need specific enzymes to break down specific foods to absorb the nutrients locked inside of it.
So when there is no proper reaction between enzymes and foods, the chunks of food are left undigested in the intestine, clogging them up, and even slowing down your ability to absorb nutrients. This often leads to constipation, less energy, bloating, as well as weight gain.
What Affects Enzyme Function?
Certain lifestyle habits and health conditions can affect your body’s natural ability to produce enzymes. Nutrient deficiencies, endocrine disorders, smoking, heavy drinking, gallstones, and inflammation are often implicated in digestive enzyme insufficiency.
But beyond that, research has shown that as we age, we lose many of our digestive enzymes. In fact, studies show that by the time you reach age 50, your enzyme production would be half of what it used to be during your childhood years.
That’s where digestive enzyme supplements come in. So you can prevent digestive issues, bloating, and even lose weight by adding vegetarian capsules containing a blend of the most powerful enzymes needed to keep your body working optimally.
These supplements are often used to improve conditions like lactose intolerance and even digestive issues, such as IBS and celiac disease.
Now, let’s proceed to answer our main question.
Do Digestive Enzymes Help with Weight Loss?
Research has shown a potential link between digestive enzymes and weight loss. As mentioned earlier, digestive enzymes help break down foods into absorbable nutrients.
Studies have also shown that digestive enzymes help enhance the health of your gut microbiome – the bacteria that lives in your digestive tract.
And the gut microbiome contributes to weight control. In fact, one review showed that enhancing the beneficial bacteria in the gut may reduce body weight, fat mass, and body mass index.
The digestive enzyme, lipase, has also been shown to decrease feelings of fullness.
One study showed that taking a lipase supplement before eating a high-fat meal caused a significant decrease in stomach fullness after one hour compared to the placebo.
So we could say digestive enzymes indirectly influence weight loss.
In summary, digestive enzymes supports weight loss in the following ways:
- It supports better nutrient absorption, keeping you fuller for longer.
- It boosts your energy levels allowing your body to work more.
- It helps move waste out, reducing overall weight.
- It help you detox, reducing your body’s toxin load
- It helps increase fat burning and muscle building.
- It supports your good bacteria
- It helps decrease inflammation
However, there are more natural ways to lose weight.
How to Use Digestive Enzymes
If you consider adding digestive enzymes to your routine, ensure you stick with the manufacturer’s recommendation.
Ideally, it is best to take digestive enzymes about 5-30 minutes before your meals. However, if you’ve already eaten, you can still take your digestive enzymes, since it takes about 4-5 hours for the stomach to empty fully.
Most digestive enzymes supplements recommend that you take 1 or 2 capsules before your meal. This is a good way to start slowly to know if your body is comfortable with the enzymes.
But in all, always follow the manufacturer’s instructions, and if you have any questions or have an underlying health condition, do not fail to consult your doctor.
One more thing – To ensure quality, always check the ingredient label and avoid supplements high in additives, fillers, and preservatives. Always choose supplements that have undergone third party testing and certified by recognized organizations, such as the United States Pharmacopeia (USP).
