Your body produces over 20 separate digestive enzymes that are actually proteins; they break down food so that your body can convert it to energy, relieve certain ailments and discomforts and bolster your immune system. Your digestive enzymes work hard from the moment that food enters your mouth. Yes! Once you take a bite of food, your digestive enzymes set out to break down the meal. The more efficient that your body is at breaking down your meals, the better your body works. Therefore, investing in and using a digestive enzyme supplement is one way to improve your overall well being.

Papain is the name of one digestive enzyme used in the manufacture of a quality digestive enzyme supplement. It is made from an unripened tropical fruit that you are probably familiar with: the papaya. The unripened fruit is crushed and the juice of the green papaya is used to make Papain. This digestive enzyme supplement ingredient helps proteins create oligopeptides and amino acids. Papain is thought to have properties that help reduce swelling and inflammation. Papain is used to assist with digestion and is also used to make meat tenderizers.

Lipase is another digestive enzyme that is produced in your body. Lipase works on the fat that you eat; it breaks it down so that your body can use it. When your body doesn't create enough Lipase to breakdown the fat, your stools will be greasy looking and very pale in color. Your body makes Lipase in the pancreas and as with all digestive enzymes, it also exists in saliva. The pancreas makes pancreatin which is essentially three digestive enzymes: lipase, amylase and proteases.

Lipase as a digestive enzyme supplement has been used to successfully aid in the treatment of Cystic Fibrosis. The benefits have been documented and it is regularly prescribed by medical doctors for this ailment. Lipase is also being used to see if it will provide benefits to patients with indigestion because of pancreas diseases or the inability of the pancreas to work efficiently.

Perhaps the most beneficial use of Lipase and Papain are for their tumor fighting effects. Many oncologists prescribe digestive supplement therapy in addition to standard medical treatment including chemo therapy for cancer patients. Chemo therapy upsets the stomach partly because it is so hard on the body and partly because chemo is a toxin. The body tries to rid itself of the additional toxin, so it expels any food from the stomach as well. However digestive supplement therapy increases the body's ability to breakdown nutrients. Further digestive enzyme supplement therapy is said to have cancer fighting benefits. Whether this is because it boosts the immune system's ability to fight tumors or whether the enzymes breakdown the tumors so that the body can expel them needs to be studied further, but there is documented success in adding digestive supplement therapy to oncology patient's treatment regimes.

As with most things in our industrialized world, food is processed and preserved to the point that many nutrients are lost before the food is consumed. Once prepared, more nutrients are leeched from your food, so you have to consider whether or not you are getting the full benefit of any nutrient. If your meals are lacking in essential nutrients, like digestive enzyme bolsters, you may have a depletion of the essential enzymes that are necessary to your health. That is why you should consider adding a digestive enzyme supplement to your diet.

If you are a frequent flier or have a lot of stress in your life, your body is being robbed of its supply of digestive enzymes. Thus, when you are standing in line at the ticket counter after sleeping through your alarm and getting stuck in traffic, your natural supply of digestive enzymes is suffering. You can add a digestive enzyme supplement to your daily routine and increase the efficiency of your body and your immune system.

If you are pregnant or nursing, you should consult with your family physician before you take any dietary supplement, including digestive enzyme supplements.