Eye Disease and Enzyme Support

Do digestive enzymes support vision and help protect against eye disease? Is there a connection between digestive enzymes and our vision?

Yes. Our visual system requires substantial daily nutrition to function properly and stay healthy. Lack of nutrients can often constitute a higher risk of onset of eye disease such as macular degeneration, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, macula edema, cataracts and even dry eyes:

This is because lack of nutrients can result in:

  • compromised circulation
  • chronic systemic inflammation
  • lack of nutrients available due to a poor diet
  • compromised absorption of nutrients

While enzymes are most known for supporting digestion, but in fact is used by every cell in our body to support normal metabolic function. Most of our enzymes are produced through our pancreas. Starting as early as 20 years old, our ability to manufacture enzymes begins to lessen. Studies show that, every ten years, your body's production of enzymes decreases by 13 percent. So by age 40, your enzyme production could be 25 percent lower than it was when you were a child. And by the time you're 70, you could be producing only ONE-THIRD of the enzymes you need.

Heating your food above 116 degrees F. renders most enzymes inactive, so eating primarily processed food and cooking in microwave ovens "denatures" enzymes.

Ninety percent of the food Americans buy is processed food. Diets heavy in cooked, processed, and sugary foods, combined with overuse of pharmaceutical drugs such as antibiotics, deplete your body's ability to make enzymes.

Eating raw foods in your diet such as daily mixed salads helps replenish enzymes in your body, and reduces the body's burden to produce its own enzymes.

Ideally, you should get 75 percent of your digestive enzymes from your food.

While all raw foods contain enzymes, the most powerful enzyme-rich foods are those that are sprouted (seeds and legumes). Sprouting increases the enzyme content in these foods tremendously. Besides sprouts, other enzyme-rich foods include:

  • Papaya, pineapple, mango, kiwi, and grapes
  • Avocado
  • Raw honey (the enzymes actually come from the bee's saliva)
  • Bee pollen
  • Extra virgin olive oil and coconut oil
  • Raw meat and dairy

Note: If you are taking enzymes for chronic inflammation, certain enzymes should be taken on an empty stomach otherwise they will be used by the body as digestive enzymes. Taking digestive enzymes during meals is also recommended for those with poor or compromised digestion.

Here are some enzyme formula recommendations:
Serrazimes® 33 mg 90 vcaps - taken on an empty stomach. Natural anti-inflammatory
Nattokinase Plus 60 caps - taken on an empty stomach. Natural anti-inflammatory, helps clear plaque in blood vessels
Digestive Enzymes-V 120 Vcaps - whole food digestive enzyme formula taken with meals.