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In this issue:
Meow,
The Co-op is Growing! No Shipping this Friday!
Finally, finally, finally! Thanks to your support we're expanding into our
very own warehouse! Yep, no worries about us being priced out of the real-estate
market in Florida. More to come on our new place. Stay tuned!
Important shipping note!!
Since we'll be moving, orders placed after 2pm on Thursday will not
be shipped until Monday of next week! So, those of you wanting
overnight shipping be sure to take note and get in those orders so we can
accommodate you!
Life Without Enzymes Contributing to that
"Middle-Aged Feeling?"
Enzymes. They govern every metabolic function in your body. Without ‘em, most
chemical reactions in cells would be too slow, creating wide-ranging effects
such as diminished energy, stamina, immune system function, hormone production,
and absorption of basic vitamins and nutrients.
Could it be that old “middle-aged” feeling of slowing down could be related
to enzyme deficiencies? Perhaps!
Keeping a healthy supply of enzymes in your body can be tough. Enzyme
production naturally decreases with age, and the typical American diet of
over-processed foods does not favor enzyme production. Even bad habits like
standing while eating or eating on the run can deplete your enzyme supplies by
straining digestion.
The effects of dwindling enzymes in your body can range from mild digestive
trouble to severe organ damage. So, let this kat help you explore what you need
to know!
Enzymes are proteins made up of amino acids. There are over 5,000 known
enzymes, with three categories including: metabolic, digestive, and food.
Metabolic enzymes play a role in all bodily processes from breathing to
maintenance of the immune system. They build and repair cells in the blood,
tissues, and organs and help neutralize and prepare for elimination of poisons
and carcinogens.
Digestive enzymes are manufactured by the pancreas and are
responsible for breaking down the bulk of partially-digested food from large
food molecules into smaller units, which can be absorbed into the body’s cells.
Food enzymes are found in raw foods and act to initiate digestion in the mouth
and stomach. Trouble is that the process of cooking food destroys
naturally-occurring enzymes, and the body must then rely on its own supply of
digestive enzymes to carry out digestion.
If “enzyme-less” food is the norm,
then your body’s enzymes become depleted more rapidly. Relying strictly on your
body’s own digestive enzyme production not only impacts healthy digestion and
nutrient absorption, it also can cause enlargement of your pancreas, which
struggles to produce more and more enzymes for denatured foods.
Eventually, your
body must start “stealing” from your metabolic enzyme resources to cover basic
digestive activity. Beyond creating severe nutritional deficiencies, a scarcity
of the right kinds of enzymes can lead to the shrinking of other vital organs,
including your brain!
Three Enzymes Critical to Digestion
To avoid such
stealing, it’s important to support healthy digestive enzyme populations,
including your PALs in digestion: protease, amylase, and lipase.
Protease digests protein, and has been studied for decades in conjunction
with immune support, inflammation, and cancer. Everything making you sick
happens to be either: (a) a protein or (b) protected by protein! You see,
bacteria, parasites, and fungal forms of invaders are all proteins, and viruses
and cancer cells are all protected by proteins. Thus your immune system is in
constant need of protease to fight the bad guys.
Amylase digests carbohydrates along with dead white blood cells. Low amylase
is thought to be a factor in blood sugar imbalances, hypoglycemia, type II
diabetes, carbohydrate cravings, and allergies.
Lipase digests fat and fat-soluble vitamins along with balancing fatty acids.
Lipase deficiency is thought to contribute to high cholesterol, high
triglycerides, and difficulty losing weight, which are all considered markers on
the road to heart disease. Lipase deficiency can also affect cell permeability,
preventing normal flows of nutrients into and wastes out of the body.
What Can You Do To Increase Healthy Enzyme
Supplies?
Choose enzyme-rich natural foods. Plant foods noted for exceptionally high
enzyme content include: extra virgin olive oil and other unrefined oils, raw
honey, grapes, figs, avocados, dates, bananas, papaya, pineapple, kiwi, and
mangos.
Beware of enzyme inhibitors. Grains, nuts, legumes, and seeds are also
rich in enzymes; however, they also contain enzyme inhibitors, which protect
seeds from germinating prematurely! Raw peanuts contain an especially large
amount of enzyme inhibitors; however, any seed -- including potatoes and eggs
(which are “seeds” of a different kind) -- has enzyme inhibitors. Unless
deactivated, these enzyme inhibitors can put an even greater strain on your
digestive system than cooked foods. Sprouting, soaking in warm acidic water,
sour leavening, culturing, and fermenting are all methods used to deactivate
enzyme inhibitors, thus making nutrients in seeds more readily available. Be
gentle in your cooking techniques.
Relying more on raw foods and gentle cooking
methods like lower heat and steaming helps. High-heat techniques like frying and
microwaving rob foods of natural enzymes as well as vital nutrient content. Keep
vitamins and minerals in healthy supply. Enzymes depend on an adequate supply of
vitamins and minerals, particularly magnesium, to perform their magic. And,
without trace minerals, many enzymes cannot function at all.
Reduce the use of
digestive medications. Many over-the-counter products are acid blockers. By
continually blocking gastric acid long-term, you can inhibit your body’s natural
ability to break down food and get rid of waste. Additionally, these products
also upset the balance of friendly bacteria and enzymes essential to healthy
digestion.
Take supplemental enzymes. Taking an enzyme-rich supplement with
meals can ensure sufficient enzymes to avoid excessive acid and to support
optimal digestion and metabolic processes. Of course, you’ll want a product that
includes all three PALs (protease, amylase, and lipase, with activity levels
proven through
independent testing).
For more on the
Co-op’s pancreatic enzymes.
If you're looking for some additional reading, check out the book:
Enzymes & Enzyme Therapy: How to Jump-Start Your Way to Lifelong Good Health
by Dr. Anthony J. Cichoke, and preface by Abram Hoffer, M.D., Ph.D.
Fast fact:
Dr. Hoffer
is famous for his use of "orthomolecular" medicine, otherwise known as treating
various health conditions through nutrition. He even collaborated with Linus
Pauling once upon a time!
Health in the News
Looking to Keep a Handle on Stress? Grab a
Friend and Take a Walk!
Researchers at Princeton University are checking out the health benefits of
companionship. What they've found? Group-housed animals (rats) who exercised
daily on a running wheel produced higher levels of new brain cells than did
those animals who either did not exercise or lived and exercised alone.
In addition to boosting brain cells, researchers also found group-activity to
help with stress, too. Although stress hormones were elevated in all runners
briefly during exercise, loner exercisers showed continuous elevated stress
levels throughout the day, where as social exercisers did not.
Continue reading on the
connection between the buddy-system and health benefits.
Friends Come in All Shapes: Baby Hippo Bonds With Ancient
Tortoise
And, now for an adorable story on friendship featuring a little hippo,
orphaned by the 2004 tsunami in Asia, and his adopted best friend, an ancient
tortoise living a full continent away.
Owen, a baby hippo, was terrified after the tsunami stranded him on an ocean
reef, far away from his home on the Sabaki River and his fellow hippos. Chased
by hoards of humans, eager to rescue him, Owen was finally apprehended and was
transported to safe refuge in Haller Park in Mambosa, Kenya.
When released into the park, Owen ran for cover behind a 130 year-old
tortoise named Mzee. The odd couple became fast friends, and their story is now
a quite famous one.
Check out
the unusual pair for yourself (and expect to say "aww") and
additional photos too!
That's all for now, fair members.
Stay tuned next week for a this kat's interview with member, Dr.
Bernard Hayden of Tennessee.
Still purringly yours,
Guido
Guido Housemouser
Chief Kat and Community Manager
Our Health Co-op
4188 Westroads Drive
Unit 123
Riviera Beach, FL 33407
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