Category: Information On Microbiology
Most natural entire foods have inherent enzymes capable of entirely or partially digesting lipids if the enzymes are not destroyed by way of heat and processing. This widely underestimated value of whole, raw, fresh foods has been by and large ignored.
A typical argument against the value of inherent food enzymes is the presumed inhospitability of the gastrointestinal tract to all complex proteins. In other words, it is argued that enzymes within the food would simply be broken down into individual amino acids and would not have a chance to effect their enzymatic action which depends upon intact secondary and tertiary structure, the folding of protein chains.
There is considerable evidence, nonetheless, that enzymes as well as other macromolecules are able to survive the rigors of digestion. Examples incorporate the capability of bacteria, salivary ptyalin, amylase and pollen to not only survive the digestive tract but be absorbed into the circulation.1-three One more interesting example of the importance of natural food enzymes is the capability of bile activated lipase in milk to pass into the little intestine intact. This enzyme has thus far been identified in human, dog, cat and non-human primate raw mammary milk. If the enzyme is destroyed by means of pasteurization, growth has been shown to be cut in half compared to those receiving the enzyme in the entire, raw, natural product. 4-6
Although inherent food enzymes could be a virtue of raw natural foods since they can assist in the digestive process, they are usually the enemy in processed foods. Lipase, for example, has the capability under the right conditions to start hydrolyzing fatty acids from their glycerol backbone. Nonetheless, this is undesirable in processed foods since once the fatty acids are split they may possibly then a lot more readily degrade and create a variety of off-flavors as well as potentially toxic oxidized molecules. Lipoxygenase discovered in some raw seeds can catalyze the oxidation of unsaturated fatty acids. Such nutrient degrading enzymes are inactivated by heat (and germination — a much better way) in processing techniques. 7
Fresh “from the vine” fatty acids are still ensconced within protective cells and typically do not degrade unless separated from their natural context. Lipoxygenase in soybeans, for example, is activated as soon as the bean is split. Thus food enzymes are an enemy to the food processor who seeks shelf life, but a possible nutritional benefactor.
Food enzymes ready from microbiological cultures can be used as supplements to replace enzymes lost throughout processing. These dried, or oil emulsified goods, are activated only when hydrated in the digestive tract and can assist in the digestive process.8
DIGESTIVE MECHANISMS
Endogenous digestion proceeds by way of many actions. When a food is eaten, mastication assists separate the fats from the other components of the food. This permits digestion by enzyme systems which allow much less than 5% of fats to pass undigested. Digestion can begin with the secretion of serous glands on the back of the tongue in some species, such as humans, continue in the stomach by means of the action of gastric lipase, and be completed by pancreatic lipase excreted into the little intestine. As lipids enter the duodenum, a variety of hormones such as secretin and cholecystokinin are stimulated. These hormones influence lipid digestion by affecting the pH of the intestinal contents, the release of pancreatic lipase, and the secretion of bile.
The boost in pH that occurs as the food bolus moves into the duodenum is required for the activity of pancreatic lipase. Secretion of bile salts from the liver emulsifies the products of lipolysis incorporating them into micelles which are complexes of bile salts, phospholipid molecules, and cholesterol. (Fig. 11)
[ Micelle Transport Image ]
http://www.wysong.net/articles/lipid/figures/figure11.jpg
Shorter chain fatty acids complexed with albumin are capable of being absorbed both in the stomach and in the small intestine. Longer chain triglycerides are disassembled in the modest intestine by lipase, solubilized in micelles, and transported into mucosal cells (enterocytes) as free of charge fatty acids. monoglycerides and small amounts of glycerol, diglycerides, cholesterol, and phospholipids. Once in the mucosal cell these components are reassembled into triglycerides, then complexed with protein, carbohydrate or phosphate and incorporated into chylomicrons which are a kind of lipoprotein that permits transport of lipids within the watery medium of the blood. The inner core of the chylomicron is composed of nonpolar triglycerides and cholesterol esters, and the membrane is polar being made up of phospholipids, cholesterol, and proteins which permit solubility in blood. (Fig. 12)
[ Lipid Absorption Image ]
http://www.wysong.net/articles/lipid/figures/figure12.jpg
Many far more details of lipid digestion have been worked out very intricately by researchers.9-14 It is fascinating to note in this procedure that the principle of nothing working in isolation holds especially true. The coordination of a range of factors within the food itself and within the organism makes feasible delivering lipids to the organism for energy and myriad metabolic processes.
Fats are not just consumed and then passively absorbed through the walls of the intestine. Rather they are ready by intricate emulsification systems, broken down in distinct patterns by enzymes, absorbed by complex mechanisms, reassembled, and ready for delivery to the body through complexing with a range of other nutrients. These processes make it possible for non-water-soluble lipid components to be delivered efficiently throughout organisms which are comprised primarily of water… an incredible feat.
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