By Sue Visser April 2018
Hardened mucous deposits, especially in the respiratory or digestive systems and even biofilms that surround bacteria and other pathogens can be effectively dissolved with proteolytic enzymes. For example papain, nattokinase, fibrinogen and many others come from natural food sources although supplements are more generally used.
Proteolytic enzymes help with inflammation of the joints, mucous congestion and coughs, blood clotting and uterine fibroids to name a few. These enzymes break up deposits of dead tissue and excess fibrin thus eliminating the cause of the inflammation. The body is then able to clean out the deposits to facilitate the healing process.
A supply of protease is produced naturally by the body but many of us do not make enough of it. People with proteolytic enzyme deficiencies can take extra protease supplements and include a number of foods to boost their protease activity. This will improve digestion, heavy coughs and break down the excessive fibrin, dead tissue and mucous deposits.
Conditions that respond well to proteolytic enzyme supplements are:
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Ulcerative Colitis where there are biofilms, scar tissue and a lot of inflammation.
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Crohn’s Disease
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Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
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Coughs and croup due to tough mucous congestion (fibrocystic lungs)
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Atherosclerosis is when the fibre accumulates with plaque and mucous on arterial walls.
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Fibrocystic breasts are laden with bundles of tough hardened tissue.
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In the pelvic region; adhesions, endometriosis, uterine fibroids and benign tumours that can grow into the size of an orange.
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Scarring and keloids after injuries or after surgery that can become excessive.
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Cystic Fibrosis is a debilitating overgrowth of fibrin. It is an inherited disorder affecting glands that secrete mucous and hormones. Typically involved are the lungs, liver, pancreas or intestines.
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Abnormal blood clots.
Fibrin strands in the blood cause it to clot if we are injured. But excessive amounts of uncontrolled fibrin can develop into accidental blood clots and attract plaque to from a dense mass that then blocks blood vessels. it can break off and block blood vessels, causing heart attacks and strokes. When levels of fibrin in the blood are too high, blood is more prone to clot.
I remembered a therapist telling me that she used to see this in blood samples she studied under a dark field microscope. She used her own blood on a regular basis but noticed that on the days she ate a lot of pineapple that the fibrin levels were hardly detectable.
It is important to take protease supplements on an empty stomach, between meals so it is not all used up for the digestion process.
Pineapples are rich in fibrinogen and the ant-inflammatory (click on this link for my full article) Learn how to unleash enzymes into your everyday food intake. The green tops and the central core of the pineapple have the most bromelain. We can extract these enzymes by pulping up pineapple leaves and skins with papaya (paw paw) pips and water in a blender and then straining out the liquid using a cloth bag.
Proteolytic enzymes break up the polypeptide bonds in protein that make fibrin.
Papaya or paw paws contain papain, a proteolytic enzyme often extracted from the fruit or seeds and used commercially as a meat tenderizer. An alternative to taking supplements is to buy some meat tenderizer that contains papain and pack it into capsules to ease up a thick mucous-laden cough in an emergency. In the same way that papain breaks down undigested protein waste in our food it may also be able break down parasites and their eggs, cysts and larval stages.
Ground-up papaya seeds are a traditional anti-parasitic remedy and are usually milled together with pumpkin seeds. They are said to expel tapeworms and larger more bothersome parasites very effectively. (I am not sure how you are going to feed it to your fussy family and pets but it is worth a try!)
Nattokinase is made by a bacteria that is used to ferment soya beans
A protoelytic enzyme that is abundant in Japanese cuisine comes from soya beans. Those that are boiled and then fermented with a sprinkle of bacillus natto that is present in straw. The resultant product is a food they call natto and it is very effective as a digestive enzyme as well as a fibrin buster. We can also eat the fermented soya beans because the enzyme is more active in the gut in the presence of bacillus subtilus – one of our strains of bowel flora. An added perk is that this bacteria consumes amyloid plaque – the pesky residues that clog up our neurons and build in the brain, resulting in Alzheimer’s disease. This helps to explain why elderly Japanese people on a traditional diet do not have such a high incidence of Alzheimer’s disease, inflammatory conditions or cardiovascular disease. But it is better to skip live silkworms as a source of serrapeptase! These days they only use the bacterial cultures, made in a sterile laboratory.
Unique ways that we can use proteolytic enzymes
Debridement of wounds – in other words, taking the old skin and other debris off wounds so they can heal better. The direct application of an enzyme like papain can be used to clean wounds. Traditionally green pawpaw was used to help clean up festering wounds. Maggots too, are wonderful for cleaning wounds and these fly larvae are specially bred for this purpose! They too, release protease enzymes onto the food (dead skin and debris) they eat to break down the protein bonds.
Making antibiotics more effective by helping to break down biofilms that block off exposure to antibiotics. Many pathogens use biofilms to escape from the immune system and evade antibiotics. As such, the drugs are rendered ineffective because they cannot make direct contact with the bacteria. Some doctors are now investigating the benefits of giving an antibiotic treatment along with a proteolytic enzyme supplement. However, one needs to be aware of the side effects (health benefits) of blood thinning plaque busting anti-inflammatory enzymes.
Disclaimer: This discussion is for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for advice from your physician or other health care professional. You are advised to first consult with a healthcare professional before starting any diet, exercise or supplementation program, before taking any food or edible morsel as medication, or if you have an existing health problem.