The late Dr. Edward Howell, a physician and pioneer in enzyme research, called enzymes the “sparks of life.” These energized protein molecules play a necessary role in virtually all of the biochemical activities that go on in the body.

They are essential for digesting food, for stimulating the brain, for providing cellular energy, and for repairing all tissues, organs, and cells. Life as we know it could not exist without the action of enzymes, even in the presence of sufficient amounts of vitamins, minerals, water, and other nutrients.

In their primary role, enzymes are catalysts substances that accelerate and precipitate the hundreds of thousands of biochemical reactions in the body that control life’s processes. If it were not for the catalytic action of enzymes, most of these reactions would take place far too slowly to sustain life. Enzymes are not consumed in the reactions they facilitate.

Each enzyme has a specific function in the body that no other enzyme can fulfill. The chemical shape of each enzyme is specialized so that it can initiate a reaction only in a certain substance, or in a group of closely related substances, and not in others. The substance on which an enzyme acts is called the substrate. Because there must be a different enzyme for every substrate, the body must produce a great number of different enzymes.

Enzymes assist in practically all bodily functions. Digestive enzymes break down food particles for energy. This chemical reaction is called hydrolysis, and it involves using water to break the chemical bonds to turn food into energy. The stored energy is later converted by other enzymes for use by the body as required. Iron is concentrated in the blood by the action of enzymes; other enzymes in the blood help the blood to coagulate in order to stop bleeding. Uricolytic enzymes catalyze the conversion of uric acid into urea. Respiratory enzymes aid in eliminating carbon dioxide from the lungs. Enzymes assist the kidneys, liver, lungs, colon, and skin in removing wastes and toxins from the body. Enzymes also utilize the nutrients ingested by the body to construct new muscle tissue, nerve cells, bone, skin, and glandular tissue. One enzyme can take dietary phosphorus and convert it into bone. Enzymes prompt the oxidation of glucose, which creates energy for the cells. Enzymes also protect the blood from dangerous waste mate-rials by converting these substances to forms that are easily eliminated by the body. Indeed, the functions of enzymes are so many and so diverse that it would be impossible to name them all.

Enzymes are often divided into two groups: digestive enzymes and metabolic enzymes. Digestive enzymes are secreted along the gastrointestinal tract and break down foods, enabling the nutrients to be absorbed into the bloodstream for use in various bodily functions. There are three main categories of digestive enzymes: amylase, protease, and lipase.

Amylase, found in saliva and in the pancreatic and intestinal juices, breaks down carbohydrates. It begins to act
as soon as you start chewing (this is why it is important to chew your food well). Different types of amylase break down specific types of sugars. For example, lactase breaks down lactose (milk sugar), maltase breaks down maltose (malt sugar), and sucrase breaks down sucrose (cane and beet sugar).

Protease, found in the stomach juices and also in the pancreatic and intestinal juices, helps to digest protein.

Lipase, found in the stomach and pancreatic juices, and also present in fats in foods, aids in fat digestion.

Another component of the digestive process is hydrochloric acid. While not technically an enzyme itself, it interacts with digestive enzymes as they perform their functions.

Metabolic enzymes are enzymes that catalyze the various chemical reactions within the cells, such as energy production and detoxification. Metabolic enzymes govern the activities of all of the body’s organs, tissues, and cells. They are the workers that build the body from proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. Metabolic enzymes are found doing their specific work in the blood, organs, and tissues. Each body tissue has its own specific set of metabolic enzymes.

Two particularly important metabolic enzymes are superoxide dismutase (SOD) and its partner, catalase. SOD is an antioxidant that protects the cells by attacking a common free radical, superoxide. Catalase breaks down hydrogen peroxide, a metabolic waste product, and liberates oxygen for the body to use.

The body uses most of its enzyme-producing potential to produce about two dozen enzymes. These control the breakdown and utilization of proteins, fats, and carbohy