Why Enzyme Drinks Could Help Boost Your Health and Wellness

Did you know you could benefit a lot from consuming an enzyme drink? From strengthening our immunity to improving the digestive system, enzyme drinks are the easy, tasty wellness booster – they help you feel more energetic. 

But first, what are enzymes? They are proteins that function as biological helpers that perform all the chemical reactions that occur in nature. Enzymes make it possible for you to digest food by converting carbohydrates into simple sugars used in your cells.

Enzymes are highly specialised. There are three categories of enzymes: enzymes present in natural foods, digestive enzymes, and metabolising enzymes. The human body produces its own digestive enzymes and metabolic enzymes. 

The human body has 3,000 enzymes, and they are involved in more than 7,000 metabolic reactions. One type of enzyme will only perform one kind of reaction. You can find digestive enzymes in your saliva, gastric juice, and bile. To give you some examples: amylase enzymes digest carbohydrates, protease digests protein, lipase digests lipids, and cellulase digests cellulose. 

A 2018 study found that some raw fruits and vegetables are rich in enzymes, such as pineapple, papaya, banana, and fig, but cooking these foods will degrade the enzymes. That is why enzyme drinks are useful. They are produced through a process that does not involve cooking them at high heat, and thus, the enzymes are retained.

Fruit Enzymes vs Fruit Vinegar

What is the difference between fruit enzymes and fruit vinegar?

How do you make a fruit enzyme drink? You can make fruit enzymes by fermenting fruit slices with sugar or honey for three to four weeks in an air-tight container. You can consume the liquid after filtering. 

On the other hand, fruit vinegar requires a longer two-part process. First, you ferment the juice into alcohol. Then, acetic acid bacteria will convert the alcohol into vinegar. With its tart and slightly sweet taste, fruit vinegar is a good compliment to salads and pickled foods.

Digestive Enzymes vs. Probiotics

Digestive enzymes are present in your digestive system, and, as the name implies, they help you digest the food you eat. They help break down the food into their basic molecules, for example, simple sugars, which are easily absorbed through the gut wall and into the bloodstream.

Meanwhile, probiotics are living microorganisms, such as live bacteria and yeasts, that live in your gut and improve your body’s physiological processes. 

Digestive enzymes and probiotics are critical for maintaining a healthy digestive system, and sometimes they complement each other. Thus, you may notice that a single supplement might contain both probiotics and digestive enzymes.

Likewise, a beverage that combines several fruit juices with apricot and prune purees can help to promote bowel and boost your metabolism. You can consume lotus nuts, too, to improve sleep and digestion, boost heart health, and prevent semen leakage.

What Is an Enzyme Drink and What Does It Do to Your Body?

Popular among environmentally and health-conscious people, fruit enzyme drinks contain probiotics, antioxidants, and enzymes. Many usually consume them to improve gut health and to regulate our body’s pH levels. 

Fruit enzyme drinks are generally sweet, though you may still taste a hint of alcohol. But where do these beverages get their sweet taste? Putting fruits and vegetables containing fructose and sugar in a tightly sealed bottle will result in alcoholic fermentation. However, because there is no added fermenting agent like yeast in the mixture, the fermentation is slow and incomplete. 

During the fermentation process, live bacteria digest the nutrients and elevate the enzyme levels in the solution. The elevated enzymes are what is beneficial for your body. The result of this fermentation process is called fruit enzyme.   

Fruit enzyme benefits include strengthening your immune system. They come in easily consumable forms like sachets that you could mix with your favourite beverage and are specially formulated with fruits and vegetables rich in phytonutrients and enzymes that aid in digestion. They also come in liquid form and could help increase the good enzymes in our body, balance our body’s pH levels, and improve digestive health. 

Besides digestive and nutritional uses, you can also utilise fruit enzymes as household cleaning agents, fertilisers, and pesticides. Made from natural fruit peels and vegetable waste, they are gentler and milder on the skin and body and environmentally friendly.

Choosing the Right Enzyme Drink

To ensure that you don’t fall for scams or harm your health, it’s essential to know how to choose the right kind of enzyme drink product. Here are five simple steps to do this: 

• Check the label and be sure that it’s made from natural ingredients only. 
• The enzymes must be “active digestive enzymes”. Only these kinds of enzymes help in digestion. 

• Ensure that it doesn’t have any kind of artificial additives, chemicals, flavour enhancers, or preservatives. 
• Choose a product from a brand that you, your doctor or your physician trusts. 
• If possible, select products that contain natural Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) herbs that help promote a healthy digestive system. Examples include hawthorn berries and dried tangerine peel.

Making Your Own Enzyme Drinks

How to make a fruit enzyme drink? The two main ingredients of fruit enzyme drinks are sugar (or honey) and different fruits and vegetables. You could also add herbs or flowers like chrysanthemums. The ratio to use is three parts fruits to one part sugar (or honey). 

Here are the steps to DIY a fruit enzyme drink at home: 

1. Prepare a large, clean and dry glass jar with a tight lid or cover
2. Cut fruits of your choice into thin slices 
3. Layer the fruit slices with sugar or honey
4. Place the fruit slices in the jar. Cover the jar tightly 
5. Store the jar at room temperature in a dry place for three to four weeks 
6. When it’s ready, the liquid will smell pleasant 
7. Filter and store the fermented liquid in clean bottles 

If you want to expand your healthy food consumption and improve your digestion, consider drinking enzyme drinks. They are palatable and pleasant beverages that are beneficial for your health and well-being.