I've been a proponent of systemic enzymes for years now. 23andMe may be giving me a hint as to WHY.
It's been established for a long time that one's production of enzymes is generous in childhood through young-adult years, then begins to dwindle after the age of 27. An easily-visible example of this lies in one's wound-healing as one gets older, the writers on this subject tell us -- we get a cut or skinned knee in gradeschool, and after it heals the scar tends to be thin and pliable, but in later life one's scars are thicker, stiffer and more unsightly. I see the difference between pre-supplementing scars and the ones that I've acquired more recently; when Spense bit me six or seven years ago, he really ripped up the skin beside my left thumbnail, but you can't see the traces unless you use a magnifying glass. Not so, for the first scar he gave me!
"Authorities" like Dr. Wm. Wong tell us that this happens inside the body as well as outside: surgeries and other internal insults cause fibrous scar tissue to build up, and our organs' functionality can suffer. Supplemental proteolitic enzymes travel about our bodies cleaning up the excess fibrin that our natural supply did when we were younger. Fibrous plugs in our smaller blood vessels, fibrin thickening our lymphatic fluid, fibrosis in our lungs and other organs, all eaten by the serrapeptase and nattokinase in systemic enzyme supplements....
As a child, my wounds didn't heal as invisibly as some kids' did. Look closely at my knees, and you can see the Ghosts of Bike-Spills Past. When i was about ten, i ruptured my spleen at Girl Scout camp; the surgical scar is bright and clear and well-raised, after all these decades.
And guess what 23andMe reveals -- some risks of fibroid disease (pulmonary) and keloids (and maybe some other fibrosis-related disorders that i don't know enough about to speculate). I should have expected it. But this thing has started me wondering, did i suffer from inadequate endogenous enzyme production in my earliest years perhaps? My old scars would seem to be evidence in that direction.
Whatever the case, i'm inclined to hypothesize that anyone who observes a genetic risk of fibrotic diseases, whether by DNA testing or simply the existence of hypertrophic scarring, would probably benefit from supplementing with a good systemic/proteolytic enzyme! ...Oh, and zinc too (thanks, George!).
Showing posts with label systemic enzymes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label systemic enzymes. Show all posts
Sunday, December 29, 2013
Sunday, July 7, 2013
i'm unable to praise systemic enzymes enough
By the time i finally arrived back home a month and a half ago, after the cruise and a week in Houston, i had managed to injure my OTHER knee -- the previously uninjured knee i depended on to take the load off Ralph. Well, when one has a chronically bad limb, the "relief part" comes under a LOT of strain and pressure, just like when one's life or business partner is incapacitated and one has to do ALL the household/job duties as well as try to help the out-of-commission person.
My first plan of action was to do all i knew how to lower the inflammation. I applied heat, elevated both knees, used NSAIDS, made sure i was getting a good omega-3:6 balance, took measures to get enough rest for it, drafted my husband to carry anything that needed to go from a lower to an upper floor of the house, lots of things of that nature. I also ordered more systemic enzymes to replace the ones i ran out of; a different type and brand, but what promised to sub for my usual stuff very efficiently.
Short story (too late) -- Louie the Left is pain-free again. There's still some swelling in the muscle-connection i damaged, and in the knee itself (probably the bursa like in Ralph), but at least i can raise and lower myself like a more normal person again.
SYSTEMIC ENZYMES ARE THE BEST ANTI-INFLAMMATORY SUPPLEMENT YOU CAN INVEST IN. They've been in use in Olympic-level sport for half a century, replacing steroids with the same sort of upgrade we see when people drop canola for butter. Systemic enzymes EAT exogenous proteins (duh -- they're proteolytic): proteins like the protective coatings on virus and cancer cells, the superfluous fibrin that creates problems in our bloodstreams and organs, the proteins that don't belong in our bodies.
Why do European and Japanese doctors believe in enzymes while American ones don't? ... Well, why do American doctors believe drug-company reps but not the clinical successes of other doctors? Maybe because they're lazy and gluttonous (for money and attention), as they're so fond of saying about the cases they're too incompetent to help....
My first plan of action was to do all i knew how to lower the inflammation. I applied heat, elevated both knees, used NSAIDS, made sure i was getting a good omega-3:6 balance, took measures to get enough rest for it, drafted my husband to carry anything that needed to go from a lower to an upper floor of the house, lots of things of that nature. I also ordered more systemic enzymes to replace the ones i ran out of; a different type and brand, but what promised to sub for my usual stuff very efficiently.
Short story (too late) -- Louie the Left is pain-free again. There's still some swelling in the muscle-connection i damaged, and in the knee itself (probably the bursa like in Ralph), but at least i can raise and lower myself like a more normal person again.
SYSTEMIC ENZYMES ARE THE BEST ANTI-INFLAMMATORY SUPPLEMENT YOU CAN INVEST IN. They've been in use in Olympic-level sport for half a century, replacing steroids with the same sort of upgrade we see when people drop canola for butter. Systemic enzymes EAT exogenous proteins (duh -- they're proteolytic): proteins like the protective coatings on virus and cancer cells, the superfluous fibrin that creates problems in our bloodstreams and organs, the proteins that don't belong in our bodies.
Why do European and Japanese doctors believe in enzymes while American ones don't? ... Well, why do American doctors believe drug-company reps but not the clinical successes of other doctors? Maybe because they're lazy and gluttonous (for money and attention), as they're so fond of saying about the cases they're too incompetent to help....
Sunday, August 12, 2012
the thyroid scenario...
...Seems to be extraordinarily oversimplified a lot of the time. One has this image of the gland manufacturing and sending out hormone like a factory responding to orders (TSH) from the head office (pituitary). Given enough raw materials going in (tyrosine and iodine), you expect your workforce (thyroid gland) to put together and ship whatever the orders called for, and it's up to the customers (body-wide tissues) to take the material (mostly T4, some T3) and further turn them into the finished products they require. If you have a less-efficient workforce, you may not get as much product from a day's work as you should. Then if a shipment of raw material doesn't arrive on time, they may work their butts off but will be unable to do the job; and if a shipment of fluoride, bromine or chlorine is mistakenly sent, it can tie up the iodine "loading-dock" while the truck-driver and foreman argue about the debacle....
Actually, this turned out to be a better analogy than i thought it would. ;-)
It's when the gland's products go out into the world to achieve their life's-work that things get REALLY complicated. That's what i have only STARTED to explore in my reading these days. The sheer number of different interactions is mind-numbing. The first thing that caught my attention: carbohydrate metabolism.
THYROID HORMONE HELPS INSULIN FERRY GLUCOSE INTO CELLS FOR ENERGY-PRODUCTION. It promotes more GLUT4 (as well as LDL) receptors. If there is less glucose in the system to be disposed-of, less thyroid is needed to do the job -- THAT is why you get lower free T3 on a low-carb diet. You just don't have the requirement; it's not pathological, it's physiological.
We should never forget for a moment that the longer our blood-glucose is high, the more DAMAGE it's inflicting on our organs, nerves and vessels. Insulin and thyroid are working their asses off to use it up or store it away FAST. Raising temperature and giving muscles a reason to do their thing are the first choice, but insulin WILL store it as fat if it has to.
When normal quantities of the thyroid hormones are called away from their usual duties to assist insulin in its endless toil, you end up with hypOthyroid symptoms. A strong healthy thyroid will do its best to make the amount you need, but it can overproduce, too, and hypERthyroidism isn't a good thing, either. Most people don't supplement tyrosine -- they make it from phenylalanine in the diet with the help of enzymes ... and remember how i said people produce fewer enzymes as they get older? Add to this iodine-deficient diets* and you have the perfect recipe for a metabolic MESS.
Some time ago, Chris Kresser wrote a good article on the connection between thyroid function and blood-sugar, and more recently, Sam Knox wrote a better one. Unless you really WANT to think that carbs in your diet are a good thing for your thyroid, i don't know how you can avoid coming to the same conclusion i did -- that MY thyroid is MUCH healthier and happier on LCHF.
_________
* most people think that they'll get plenty of iodine from salty foods, not knowing that commercial foods are usually made with NONiodized salt.
Actually, this turned out to be a better analogy than i thought it would. ;-)
It's when the gland's products go out into the world to achieve their life's-work that things get REALLY complicated. That's what i have only STARTED to explore in my reading these days. The sheer number of different interactions is mind-numbing. The first thing that caught my attention: carbohydrate metabolism.
THYROID HORMONE HELPS INSULIN FERRY GLUCOSE INTO CELLS FOR ENERGY-PRODUCTION. It promotes more GLUT4 (as well as LDL) receptors. If there is less glucose in the system to be disposed-of, less thyroid is needed to do the job -- THAT is why you get lower free T3 on a low-carb diet. You just don't have the requirement; it's not pathological, it's physiological.
We should never forget for a moment that the longer our blood-glucose is high, the more DAMAGE it's inflicting on our organs, nerves and vessels. Insulin and thyroid are working their asses off to use it up or store it away FAST. Raising temperature and giving muscles a reason to do their thing are the first choice, but insulin WILL store it as fat if it has to.
When normal quantities of the thyroid hormones are called away from their usual duties to assist insulin in its endless toil, you end up with hypOthyroid symptoms. A strong healthy thyroid will do its best to make the amount you need, but it can overproduce, too, and hypERthyroidism isn't a good thing, either. Most people don't supplement tyrosine -- they make it from phenylalanine in the diet with the help of enzymes ... and remember how i said people produce fewer enzymes as they get older? Add to this iodine-deficient diets* and you have the perfect recipe for a metabolic MESS.
Some time ago, Chris Kresser wrote a good article on the connection between thyroid function and blood-sugar, and more recently, Sam Knox wrote a better one. Unless you really WANT to think that carbs in your diet are a good thing for your thyroid, i don't know how you can avoid coming to the same conclusion i did -- that MY thyroid is MUCH healthier and happier on LCHF.
_________
* most people think that they'll get plenty of iodine from salty foods, not knowing that commercial foods are usually made with NONiodized salt.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
systemic enzymes ... finally
Back in '04 or '05, my doctor suggested i take Iodoral. Naturally, i started reading up on the stuff; as a result i ended up exploring this site and finding out about systemic enzymes, too. Sounded interesting, so i then had to start reading up on THOSE.
It seems that in Germany, back in the cold-war days, Eastern Bloc sports trainers were looking for a better way to control inflammation in their over-trained corps. Hearing of a Munich doctor/manufacturer who was getting good medical results from enzymes for inflammation, they managed to procure a large amount and started experimenting. To their surprise and delight, there were benefits above and beyond the immediate goal. More info here, if you're interested....
Systemic enzymes (designated so to distinguish them from digestive ones) have an application in not only fighting inflammation but in "eating" a lot of proteins which aren't beneficial to the body. Protein and fibrin coatings on viruses and cancer cells, excess scar tissue, debris in the bloodstream that clogs microcirculation, fibrosis that limits organ function, all this is controllable with enzyme use. They've been used in Europe and Japan for decades, but they still haven't widely caught on in this country.
The body, it turns out, makes a finite amount of enzymes in a lifetime, no matter how long it lasts. This fact could be used as an argument that all nature really wants us to do is survive till we reproduce, because at around the age of 27 our production of enzymes tapers off dramatically, to "keep" us as best they can on dwindling supplies. As an example within the experience of most people, compare the scars you get now to the ones you got as a child -- now they're thicker and less pliable, more unsightly. The logic goes, then, that supplementing the enzymes your body now doles out so scantily will help you heal and maintain functions like a younger person does.
When i started taking them, i felt like i was beginning to experience fibromyalgia, and i had carpel-tunnel symptoms when i did any sewing or crocheting -- these faded away. I've been curiously resistant to viruses since i began enzymes, too. A couple of years ago, the dog roughed up my thumb REAL GOOD, but i can only see the scar if i look very closely. I'm a believer.
I understand that systemic enzymes do great things for diabetics and cancer-sufferers as well as helping to keep viruses at bay. Of course, mainstream medicine pooh-poohs their use for anything but digestion. They claim that orally-administered enzymes won't live to reach the bloodstream, let alone pass the blood-brain barrier to aid a person with a brain tumor. As usual, they're wrong, because the latter has been documented to happen. Of course, to survive stomach acid, the supplement must have the "enteric" coating -- that's one reason why your brand of enzyme is important. The other big reason is, they have to be handled right; overheated enzymes are dead enzymes, and they won't help anybody.
I started out using a brand called Vitalzym, then when Dr. Wong came out with his own (stronger) version, i switched to Zymessence. Unfortunately, they BOTH changed their formulations, and i was about ready to dump the whole lot of them. :-P I'm happy to say, it wasn't necessary, because the lady at Quackcenter (a nurse with a PhD) had done her research and found someone who made a product that turned out to be identical to the ORIGINAL Vitalzym -- it's called Exclzyme -- and i'm contentedly taking that these days. Three caps in the morning a half an hour (at least) before anything else goes in my mouth.
Did i mention that in the last seven or eight years i've only had the flu once or twice, and very lightly? A lot of supplements and foods have done good things for me, but THAT i credit directly to the systemic enzymes.
It seems that in Germany, back in the cold-war days, Eastern Bloc sports trainers were looking for a better way to control inflammation in their over-trained corps. Hearing of a Munich doctor/manufacturer who was getting good medical results from enzymes for inflammation, they managed to procure a large amount and started experimenting. To their surprise and delight, there were benefits above and beyond the immediate goal. More info here, if you're interested....
Systemic enzymes (designated so to distinguish them from digestive ones) have an application in not only fighting inflammation but in "eating" a lot of proteins which aren't beneficial to the body. Protein and fibrin coatings on viruses and cancer cells, excess scar tissue, debris in the bloodstream that clogs microcirculation, fibrosis that limits organ function, all this is controllable with enzyme use. They've been used in Europe and Japan for decades, but they still haven't widely caught on in this country.
The body, it turns out, makes a finite amount of enzymes in a lifetime, no matter how long it lasts. This fact could be used as an argument that all nature really wants us to do is survive till we reproduce, because at around the age of 27 our production of enzymes tapers off dramatically, to "keep" us as best they can on dwindling supplies. As an example within the experience of most people, compare the scars you get now to the ones you got as a child -- now they're thicker and less pliable, more unsightly. The logic goes, then, that supplementing the enzymes your body now doles out so scantily will help you heal and maintain functions like a younger person does.
When i started taking them, i felt like i was beginning to experience fibromyalgia, and i had carpel-tunnel symptoms when i did any sewing or crocheting -- these faded away. I've been curiously resistant to viruses since i began enzymes, too. A couple of years ago, the dog roughed up my thumb REAL GOOD, but i can only see the scar if i look very closely. I'm a believer.
I understand that systemic enzymes do great things for diabetics and cancer-sufferers as well as helping to keep viruses at bay. Of course, mainstream medicine pooh-poohs their use for anything but digestion. They claim that orally-administered enzymes won't live to reach the bloodstream, let alone pass the blood-brain barrier to aid a person with a brain tumor. As usual, they're wrong, because the latter has been documented to happen. Of course, to survive stomach acid, the supplement must have the "enteric" coating -- that's one reason why your brand of enzyme is important. The other big reason is, they have to be handled right; overheated enzymes are dead enzymes, and they won't help anybody.
I started out using a brand called Vitalzym, then when Dr. Wong came out with his own (stronger) version, i switched to Zymessence. Unfortunately, they BOTH changed their formulations, and i was about ready to dump the whole lot of them. :-P I'm happy to say, it wasn't necessary, because the lady at Quackcenter (a nurse with a PhD) had done her research and found someone who made a product that turned out to be identical to the ORIGINAL Vitalzym -- it's called Exclzyme -- and i'm contentedly taking that these days. Three caps in the morning a half an hour (at least) before anything else goes in my mouth.
Did i mention that in the last seven or eight years i've only had the flu once or twice, and very lightly? A lot of supplements and foods have done good things for me, but THAT i credit directly to the systemic enzymes.
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