It is often easier during the summer months to maintain digestive and physical health than during the winter. The warm temperatures of the summer bode well for large amounts of exercise, and the opportunities to spend time outside can truly be beneficial to the body’s health.

During the winter months, however, daily exercise becomes more of a challenge and often our best eating habits start to falter. Keep these tips for better digestion in mind as you prepare for family get together during the winter season.

- Try to eat your meals at regular times. As winter approaches, the amount of daylight may vary. Try to eat at the same times each day as even though the amount of light may change, your body appreciates a regular schedule.

- Take time to savor your food and don’t forget to chew properly. Eating more slowly can help you to better digest your food, and you may find that your stomach may feel “full” sooner, so you won’t eat as much.

- Get enough sleep at night, at least 8-9 hours. Sleep is a great healer and we tend to underestimate its importance in our sleep-deprived culture.

- Drink plenty of H20. Have you ever noticed that your lips or mouth feel dry? That can be a sign that it is a great time to take a drink of water. Sometimes it can be easy to drink enough when our stomachs get full of food (or sweets!)

- Replace a cooked meal with a raw meal daily. Sometimes this tip can be a difficult one during the winter months. If you find it difficult to completely change over a meal to raw fruits and vegetables, consider using them as hors’devours. Raw fruits and vegetables contain valuable enzymes that are lost when foods are heated in cooking.

-Take a good probiotic to maintain healthy flora in the intestines. Enzymedica recommends our Pro-Bio ™ product, or Digest Gold+Probiotics ™ .

– Reduce stress through daily exercise, yoga and meditation, and take a relaxing walk after you eat. For those living in Southern climates, this tip is a little easier during the winter months. Still there are plenty of opportunities for exercise at home, even if the snow is up to your windows outside!

- Try a product containing a full spectrum blend of the four key enzymes, viz., protease to digest protein, amylase to digest carbohydrates, lipase to digest fats, and cellulase to digest fiber.

– Take the “enzyme deficiency test” from Enzymedica – The Enzyme Experts, and initiate steps for healthy digestion throughout the colder months.

There’s been a lot of talk lately about probiotics and the ways they benefit the body.  Probiotics are the healthy flora that reside in the digestive tract.  Traditionally, probiotics were consumed through cultured foods like cheese and yogurt and fermented beverages like kefir.  Today, dietary supplements containing probiotics are some of the most popular products on the shelf.

The condition and function of the gastrointestinal tract is essential to overall health.  This condition is highly dependent on the presence of billions of probiotic cultures which support regularity, aid the immune system, and produce vitamins like B and K.  These healthy microflora protect us against the overgrowth of already present, potentially pathogenic organisms in the gut.  They also fuel digestion through the production of enzymes such as lactase, protease, and amylase.  As an added bonus, the enzymes made by the flora work synergistically with the body’s inherent enzymes to support digestive health and optimal wellbeing.

Probiotics are active cultures which must make their way through various obstacles in their journey to the gastrointestinal tract.  First, they must stand up to exposure to light, heat, and moisture on the shelf. After consumption, they must withstand harsh stomach acid and other digestive fluids.  Key to the efficacy of a probiotic supplement is product stability, both on the shelf and inside the intestinal tract.

Enzymedica’s Pro-Bio™ is a guaranteed potency probiotic formulated to support healthy intestinal microflora balance.  Pro-Bio is shelf stable and enteric coated. The enteric coating ensures that the probiotic formulation reaches its destination in the intestinal tract, safely bypassing the acid environment of the stomach.* The 8 strains of healthy bacteria chosen for Pro-Bio are well tolerated and have a history of beneficial use.

To learn more about how probiotics can help with healthy body functions, read the Pro-Bio product handout here.

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Many individuals are taking both enzymes and probiotics to support healthy immune function.  These supplements work hand in hand, promoting healthy digestion, elimination, and overall wellness.

There has been some recent concern that protease taken with probiotics kills both the probiotics consumed orally and the microflora that are already a part of the intestinal ecosystem. This idea is based on the simplistic understanding that protease breaks down protein. Though this is true, it is incomplete.

Plant-based proteases (from aspergillus) have the ability to break down a fairly wide range of proteins in a reasonably wide pH. However, they do not break down all proteins. In order for these proteases to break down proteins, at least one of the following must be met: The protein must be dead, as in the case when we eat protein; the protein must be damaged; the protein must be tagged for removal by the immune system. If these plant-based proteins did indeed break down all proteins, then all red blood cells, white blood cells, muscle tissues, stomach lining, arteries, other enzymes, and practically every other tissue of the body would be in danger.

Another point to consider is the content of the probiotics themselves. They are bacterial organisms, full of enzymes, including proteases. Why don’t the proteases in the probiotic kill the cell? The answer is obvious: the protease in bacteria is specific and does not digest the living protein found in the bacteria itself.

Enzymedica offers a complete line of digestive, therapeutic and supportive enzymes, including America’s top two sellers, Digest™ and Digest Gold™ and the new Digest Basic™.  Our guaranteed potency Pro-Bio™ probiotic formula is enteric coated and features 8 species of healthy microflora with 5 billion CFU in a single capsule serving.

Link to us at:  Enzymedica – http://www.enzymedica.com/blog

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