Bloating, frequent spotting of semi-digested food in the stool or constant lack of energy can be signs of low enzyme count. You could be loading up your diets with the best vitamins, minerals, healthy fats and proteins, however, if your gut has a low count of digestive enzymes or if they aren’t working properly, your diet could be all in vain as your body will not be able to fully absorb all the benefits.
Here’s how you can tell your enzymes are lagging and how to correct it.
What Causes Low Enzyme Count
Naturally, the human system is able to produce enzymes that can handle a typical balanced diet. However, malfunctioning of organs, psychological issues or disease and certain conditions can curtail the production.
Most digestive enzymes are produced by the pancreas and intestinal linings. Therefore any damage to the pancreas or intestinal wall problems such as Celiac disease can significantly curtail enzyme production. In fact, anything that causes inflammation in the gut or that can impede the functioning of the pancreas will reduce enzyme production.
In addition, there are other causes of low enzyme count that don’t involve damage to the stomach linings or pancreas. For starters, our systems tend to produce fewer enzymes as we age.
However, the single most common cause of digestive dysfunctions and low enzyme count is stress. When you are stressed, your body produces adrenaline which inhibits other “less urgent processes” such as the production of digestive enzymes. Adrenaline directs all your energies towards addressing the “source of stress,” resulting in a low enzyme count.
What are the Symptoms of Low Enzyme Count?
What are the Symptoms of Low Enzyme Count?
- Frequently visible fragments of semi-digested or undigested food in stool
- Steatorrhoea or presence of excess fats or oily stool
- Stomach discomforts including the feeling like you have a “rock” in your tummy.
- Frequent diarrhea and constipation
- Frequent and excessive gas or bloating
- Symptoms of malnutrition and inadvertent weight loss
- Constant lethargy and lack of energy.
These symptoms can be associated with a myriad of ailments, therefore it is important to visit a physician who can perform the right tests and give you an accurate diagnosis. Nevertheless, if you are experiencing these symptoms while your diets are high are nutrition, enzyme tests can be also useful in revealing a myriad of other digestive conditions.
Correcting Low Enzyme Count
As we have mentioned above, your body ideally should produce sufficient enzymes to handle a typical balanced diet. However, age often is the cause behind the declining production rate of enzymes. The fastest way to rejuvenate our body and restore our enzyme potential is to consume natural digestive enzymatic supplements, which can supplement your daily diet.
Plant-based supplements such as pineapple enzyme supplements are known to be less potent, but more accessible and highly beneficial. You can start off with such food enzyme supplements as you progress to more potent – animal based digestive enzyme supplements even as you amend your diet to improve gut flora and the breakdown, and absorption of food.