Healthy digestion—the ability of the body to convert food in the stomach and intestines into absorbable nutrients—is essential for good health. Many foods and supplements encourage healthy digestion, including enzymes, fiber, herbs, green “super-foods,” and probiotics.

Enzymes—naturally-occurring proteins that speed up chemical reactions in the body—are essential to digestion. The primary enzymes for digesting carbohydrates (starch), fats, and proteins are amylase, lipase, and protease, respectively. Raw and fermented foods are also rich natural sources of digestive enzymes.

Fiber, derived from plants, helps the body efficiently use glucose—the chief energy source in the body—and carries waste out of the body by passing through the digestive system. The daily recommended amount of fiber is at least 25 to 35 grams—or about 10 grams per 1,000 calories—and nutritionists suggest supplementing with apple pectin, flax, modified citrus pectin, oat bran, and psyllium to get enough of this beneficial dietary ingredient.

Herbs such as chamomile, ginger, and peppermint help ease stomach upset, occasional gas, bloating, and cramps, and come in tea, extract, and capsule forms. Artichoke helps break down fats in the liver, and milk thistle supports healthy liver function. Dandelion root is a mild laxative that increases digestive juices and improves liver function.

Green super-foods such as alfalfa, chlorella, green barley, spirulina, and wheat grass contain digestive enzymes that break down carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. These concentrated nutrient juices from plants are rich in enzymes and chlorophyll (green pigment) which aid healthy digestion and help eliminate toxins (poisons) from the body.

Probiotics are microorganisms—organisms invisible to the naked eye—that help maintain a healthy balance of live, beneficial bacteria in the digestive tract. Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium bifidum are two of the most widely-used probiotics, known for their fast-acting, soothing effects on the digestive system. In recent studies, probiotics effectively reduced diarrhea.

Reference: Digestion; 2005,Vol. 72, No. 1, 57-68.

Tags: digestion, enzymes, essential, fiber, food, health, herbs, nutrients, probiotics, stomach

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