Do Digestive Enzymes Help with Food Sensitivities?

Food sensitivities affect millions of people worldwide, causing discomfort and digestive issues after eating certain foods. Many seek solutions beyond avoiding trigger foods, and digestive enzymes often come up as a potential aid. But can digestive enzymes truly help with food sensitivities? This post explores the potential role for different enzymes in a variety food sensitivities, and how you can work out which enzymes could be useful for you (or not!).

Digestive enzymes can contain a range of different enzymes.

Understanding Food Sensitivities and Enzymes

Food sensitivities differ from food allergies. While allergies trigger an immune response that can be severe or life-threatening, sensitivities usually cause digestive discomfort and other symptoms. Common signs include bloating, gas, diarrhea, stomach pain, and fatigue after eating certain foods like dairy, gluten, or high-FODMAP foods.

Food sensitivities often result from difficulty digesting specific components in food. For example:

• Lactose intolerance occurs when the body lacks enough lactase enzyme to break down lactose in dairy.

• Gluten sensitivity may involve an immune reaction or difficulty digesting gluten proteins.

• Sensitivities to other carbohydrates such as sucrose can also cause symptoms.

  
  

Because these issues stem from digestion problems, digestive enzymes have gained attention as a possible way to ease symptoms.

What Are Digestive Enzymes?

Digestive enzymes are proteins that help break down food into smaller molecules the body can absorb. The body naturally produces enzymes in the mouth, stomach, pancreas, and small intestine. Key enzymes include:

• Amylase breaks down carbohydrates.

• Protease breaks down proteins.

• Lipase breaks down fats.

• Lactase breaks down lactose.

How Digestive Enzymes May Help With Food Sensitivities

Digestive enzymes can help by improving the breakdown of problematic food components, thus removing ior reducing the trigger. If you have any of the following issues, then you may benefit from taking enzymes.

Lactase Enzyme Can Help With Lactose Intolerance

Lactase is an enzyme that helps people with lactose intolerance digest lactose, the sugar found in milk and dairy products. Normally, people with lactose intolerance have low levels of lactase in their gut, which means lactose passes through the digestive system undigested, causing symptoms like bloating, gas, and diarrhea. Taking lactase enzyme supplements before eating dairy can help break down lactose, making it easier to digest and reducing uncomfortable symptoms. Using a combination strategy of choosingf lactose free dairy options and use of lactase enzymes can effectively manage lactose intolerance.

FODMAP Enzymes can Help With FODMAP Intolerance

Digestive enzymes are sometimes used to help people who have trouble digesting certain FODMAPs (Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides, and Polyols). These are types of carbohydrates that can cause symptoms like bloating, gas, and abdominal pain in sensitive individuals, especially those with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Lactose intolerance and use of the enzyme LACTASE are discussed above.

Other FODMAPs that can be helped with enzymes :

• FRUCTANS such as those found in onion and garlic and wheat can be broken down with the enzyme FRUCTAN HYDROLYSE.

• INULIN (a type of FRUCTAN) can be broken down by INULINASE.

• FRUCTOSE can be broken down by GLUCOSE ISOMERASE or XYLOSE ISOMERASE.

• GOS or GALACTANS (in legumes) can be broken down by ALPHA-GALACTOSIDASE.

• POLYOLS (SORBITOL & MANNITOL): no enzymes as of yet are available.

For examples of some FODMAP enzymes that can be useful, read on!

FODMAP ENZYME: Intoleran Quatrase (tablets)

INTOLERAN QUATRASE ENZYMES	USEFUL FOR
xylose isomerase	FRUCTOSE
alpha- galactosidase	GOS (GALACTANS) eg legumes
invertase	SUCROSE (not a FODMAP)
lactase	LACTOSE

FODMAP ENZYME: Fodzyme (powder)

FODZYME ENZYME	USEFUL FOR
fructan hydrolase	FRUCTANS
alpha-galactosidase	GOS OR GALACTANS
lactase	LACTOSE
dextrin (from non-GMO corn)	NOT AN ENZYME, A FILLER

Enzymes for Carbohydrate Issues

As well as the enzymes designed for FODMAP issues, there are other enzymes aimed at breaking down carbohydrates that can prove to be an issue for some people.

• INSOLUBLE FIBRE: some people find it hard to digest insoluble fibre,and may find relief from the enzyme: HEMICELLULASE (Note:  this is not a diagnosable condition)

• Where there is a diagnosis of SUCRASE DEFICIENCY or CSID (Congenital Sucrose- Isomaltase Deficiency) then there is a lack of the enzyme SUCRASE and MALTASE enzyme and supplementing with these enzymes (SUCROSE: SUCRASE, INVERTASE, MALTOSE: MALTASE) can be very helpful.

• Other enzymes such as PECTINASE breaks down pectin and Amylase breaks down starch, note that this not usually a diagnosable condition.

Enzymes That Help With Fat Malabsorption

Fat malabsorption can occur for a variety of reasons that all affect the body's ability to provide enough LIPASE to manage the breakdown of fats in the small intestine. Fat malbsorption means that there will be a higher fat content in the resulting bowel motions which cause a very pale in colour, to float in the toilet and thus hard to flush (due to the high fat content), the stools tend to be bulky and noticably loose with quite an odour that is more than unpleasant. if this is you, taking a lipase enzyme may help you with digesting fat in your gut.

Enzymes that Help With Gluten Breakdown

There is an enzyme called CARICAIN that can help break down very small amounts of gluten that you may find in cross contamination of foods. Caricain is a patented enzyme from the fruit of the Carica papaya plant. This is more targeted to people with Coeliac Disease and is not seen to be useful for Non Coeliac Disease gluten Intolerance. An example of this enzyme in Australia is Gluteguard.

Enzyme For Histamine Intolerance

Histamine intolerance is often caused by a deficiency or reduced activity of the enzyme DIAMNE OXIDASE (DAO) which is the primary enzyme responsible for breaking down histamine. When DAO is insufficient, excess histamine from food, alcohol, or other sources accumulates in the body, leading to symptoms that mimic allergic reactions. Management focuses on reducing histamine (or amine) and potentially salicylate intake through diet, as well as potentially using DAO-fortified supplements to help with symptom management. 

DAO MINI ENZYME	USEFUL FOR
Diamine Oxidase	HISTAMINE

What Enzymes Could You Choose?

Commercial enzymes are usually made of many different enzymes that may cover different issues (but unlikely all the issues). Use the information above to see what the individual enzymes break down to assess if it matches with your underlying food issue.

Practical Tips for Using Digestive Enzymes

Overall, enzymes can be a useful tool but are not a cure-all. Their effectiveness depends on the type of sensitivity and the specific enzyme used.

If you want to try digestive enzymes for food sensitivities, keep these points in mind:

• Identifying your trigger foods can help

• Choose enzyme supplements that match your sensitivity. For example, lactase for dairy intolerance, or general FODMAP enzymes for onion/garlic and other fructan issues

• Take enzymes with the food (and some times drinks) and repeat after 20 minutes if you are still eating the food

• Start with the recommended dose and monitor your symptoms.

• Consult a healthcare provider before starting supplements, especially if you have underlying health conditions or take medications.

  
  

When Enzymes May Not Be Enough

Digestive enzymes can help with some sensitivities but may not work for everyone. If symptoms persist or worsen, consider:

• Testing for food allergies or other digestive disorders.

• Working with a Specialised Food Intolerance Dietitian