Amylase, lipase & protease are digestive enzymes essential to health. As biological catalysts they metabolize macronutrients into simpler forms of energy easily absorbed by bodies.
Digestive health affects energy levels, immunity and mental stability. Conditions like celiac disease can happen when specific enzymes or their affiliated processes don't function properly.
There are 22 known digestive enzymes in the human body. Enzymes amylase, lipase, and protease work together in different parts of the digestive system to deconstruct food into its basic elements.
Amylase - Carbohydrates
Amylase transforms complex carbohydrates into simpler sugars. While most digestive enzymes are secreted primarily by the pancreas, amylase also comes from the mouth, produced by the salivary glands.
During chewing, salivary glands actively secrete amylase. This is the beginning of digestion, the severing of long chains of starch into simpler sugar molecules like maltose.
The process continues further down the digestive tract, as pancreatic amylase finishes decomposing starches in the small intestine into glucose, to be absorbed by the bloodstream.
Amylase levels can differ significantly from person to person. Those who consume a lot of of carbohydrates often have higher levels of this enzyme, helping process starchy foods.
Lipase: Fat Digestion
Produced in the pancreas, with smaller amounts secreted in the stomach, lipase specializes in breaking down fats or lipids into fatty acids and glycerol. These can be absorbed and reused by the body.
Fats are tricky to digest because they’re hydrophobic and don't dissolve in water. To reduce them, bile is produced in the liver and stored in the gallbladder.
It emerges to emulsify fats to smaller drops, increasing surface area. Lipase degrades triglycerides to simple fatty acids and monoglycerides, enabling the digestive system to absorb these nutrients.
The body typically produces about 60 grams of lipase daily. The enzyme is active mainly in the small intestine.
Lipase is important to infant health. Babies rely on the enzyme gastric lipase, secreted in the stomach, which helps them digest fat-rich breast milk.
Protease: Proteins
Protease dismantles proteins into peptides, and ultimately into amino acids. The body needs these to build muscles, enzymes, hormones, and other structures. It occurs in many different forms.
Proteases recognize specific peptide bonds in protein chains. They sever the bonds to facilitate reduction of the proteins to amino acids.
Protease is predominantly produced in the pancreas, though some variants of the enzyme are active in the stomach. Stomach acids first denature (unfold) the proteins, making them easier to digest.
Gastric proteases, like pepsin in the stomach, then join the party. Once the partially digested protein reaches the small intestine, pancreatic proteases like trypsin and chymotrypsin continue the process.
Plant proteases also benefit human digestive health. For example enzymes like bromelain from pineapples and papain from papayas are used as natural meat tenderizers.
Amylase, lipase, and protease each target a specific macronutrient. Their actions ensure the body receives glucose for energy, fatty acids for energy storage and metabolic function, and amino acids for growth and repair.
Non-Fiction Books:
Fiction Books:
READ: Lora Ley Adventures - Germanic Mythology Fiction Series
READ: Reiker For Hire - Victorian Detective Murder Mysteries