Delivering Enzymes in Functional Foods

Delivering Enzymes in Functional Foods

by Heather Granato

"It's not just what you eat--it's what you absorb." This phrase has taken on new meaning in today's fast-paced world. Eating out, rich foods, nutrient-depleted soil, an overabundance of refined carbohydrates, and few fruits and vegetables--is it any wonder that America is a nation of overweight, undernourished people?

While consumers search for the magic diet that could maximize their health potential, one of the keys is waiting on the shelves and within the whole foods they overlook. Enzymes are large proteins that work like keys to unlock a specific door. They catalyze chemical reactions, or increase their rate, without being affected themselves and are responsible for breaking down substances into their basic structures.

More than 3,000 types of enzymes have been identified. They can be classified into six main groups: hydrolases, isomerases, ligases, lyases, oxidoreductases and transferases. The primary enzymes of concern in the nutritional and functional food industries are the hydrolases. They work by adding a water molecule to the substance to be impacted. The main classes of hydrolytic enzymes are protease (proteins), amylase (carbohydrates), lipase (fats or lipids) and cellulase (cellulose). Enzymes only work on a specific substrate--an enzyme that affects fat will not work to help digest protein, for example. Within the classes, individual enzymes are also highly specific in the substrate they affect. Lactase acts on the milk sugar lactose, while papain breaks proteins into amino acid components.

Enzymes can improve the digestion of food, reduce stress in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, help maintain normal pH levels and promote the growth of healthy intestinal flora. Many foods contain the enzymes necessary for their digestion. However, enzymes are highly susceptible to changing environmental conditions such as pH, moisture and temperature, and are destroyed by the high temperatures used in cooking and processing.

Enzymes can be sourced from animal tissue, plants or microorganisms such as fungi or bacteria. Pancreatin is the best-known animal source enzyme; it is a proteolytic enzyme that acts in a narrow pH range. Plant enzymes include papain (from papaya) and bromelain (from pineapple); they are generally effective in a broader pH range and are also usually proteolytic. Fungal or bacterial enzymes offer the widest action and the broadest range of activity in the body.

To produce commercial quantities of enzymes, many manufacturers isolate microbial strains that produce the desired enzyme or genetically engineer the strain to produce a desired enzyme. Through fermentation carried out under optimal conditions, manufacturers can produce sufficient quantities of product. Production is governed by federal agencies (i.e., the Food and Drug Administration) and state regulations. Many manufacturers also follow industry guidelines for production. Enzymes are available in a variety of physical forms: liquids, slurries, granules and powders.

Foods & Functional Foods

Since men first found that enzymes could make beer from grain, enzymes have played an important role in food production. Enzymes are used in many commercial processes to speed up catalytic reactions, and are then deactivated through heat or other environmental change. Consider rennet, an enzyme mixture from the stomach of calves, used in cheese production to facilitate the separation of curd from whey. Today, a purified form of the major enzyme--chymosin--is produced microbially from genetically modified organisms (GMOs). This allows cheese producers to have a plentiful source at a reasonable cost; also, vegetarians and those following kosher guidelines can now consume cheese that contains no meat product.

Cheese and other dairy products have also given enzyme producers an educational opportunity. It is estimated that 50 million Americans are lactose-intolerant, with up to 80 percent of blacks and 90 percent of Asians affected. These consumers lack the enzyme lactase, which converts the milk sugar lactose into two digestible sugars--glucose and galactose. Without adequate lactase, lactose ferments in the intestine, producing gas and other side effects. With McNeil Nutritionals' introduction of Lactaid, a milk containing lactase, consumers found a way to enjoy a dairy product and gained an understanding of how enzymes help with digestion.

McNeil also offers Lactaid as a dietary supplement. As consumers have become more aware of nutrient absorption, enzyme supplements have become increasingly popular. "Enzymes are widely used as in vivo digestive aids," said Phil Ronsivalli, spokesman for Kennesaw, Ga.-based Deerland Enzymes. "There is even growing discussion about the possible beneficial use of enzymes to replace some drugs or analgesics."

However, as with many other categories of dietary supplements, there is a growing interest in providing nutrients through functional and fortified foods, rather than simply in a pill. "Enzymes can help digest functional foods and make the ingredients more bioavailable," said Rohit Medhekar, Ph.D., technical resources manager with Forsyth, Mo.-based National Enzyme Co. "Any food products that need to be digested before the nutrients can be absorbed by the body are good candidates for added enzymes."

One example is the nutritional bar market. There are now bars to meet every type of dietary requirement--high protein, low carb, diabetic, men's, women's, etc. Consumers are looking to get full nutrition, even meal replacement, from a small amount of food packed with nutrients. "Adding enzymes to functional food products that are high in protein, for example, can help consumers better utilize those nutrients," said Gabrielle Sill, marketing manager with Specialty Enzymes Co., based in Chino, Calif.

Functional foods are also targeting the aging baby boomers. As the body ages, natural enzyme production slows, making it more difficult to fully absorb nutrients through food and equally important to ingest appropriate enzymes with foods. Boomers turning to nutritional beverage powders for an easy meal could find enhanced nutrient absorption if the powder contained enzymes. "Dry beverages that you rehydrate are a good way of delivering enzymes," said Peter Moodie, sales director for New York-based Enzyme Development Corp. "However, the heat processing poses concerns, and there can be an issue with the expense of delivering enzymes through that channel rather than just as a supplement."

The beverage field epitomizes some of the inherent difficulties with adding enzymes to functional foods and beverages. As mentioned previously, there are three major factors that affect enzymes' efficacy and functionality--temperature, pH and moisture. "One has to be careful when adding enzymes to beverages since they will start processing their substrate as soon as they come in contact with water," Medhekar said. "This can alter the taste and aesthetic nature of the beverage." On Lactaid's Web site, the company notes that the milk is sweeter than regular milk because the protein has been broken into simple sugars. Ready-to-drink beverages face the problem that added enzymes would quickly break down the appropriate nutrients, changing the taste profile. Also, the enzymes would not be in a form deliverable to the intestines to help further absorb nutrients in the product.

Also, as Moodie pointed out, there are concerns with the heat involved in most food production. "Most enzymes are used in processing and are inactive when the food is delivered because they have been heated to a point where the enzyme protein is denatured and is no longer active," he said.

As manufacturers explore the possibilities available for adding enzymes for nutrient absorption and health benefits, suppliers caution to keep an eye on safety. "Safe handling of the enzyme preparation is a huge issue in the enzyme market," Moodie said. "Enzymes represent a potential respiratory risk."

Despite the many beneficial properties they confer, enzymes--like all proteins--have the potential to become an allergen if people become sensitized. Safe handling of enzyme preparations can be accomplished through proper work practices, engineering controls and use of protective equipment. When working with enzymes, it is important that the production process does not generate aerosols or come in direct skin contact.

The Enzyme Technical Association (www.enzymetechnicalassoc.org) offers brochures about safely working with enzymes and other industry concerns. Also, manufacturers that are new to the enzyme field could benefit from working with an experienced contract packer that can assist with production. Many suppliers offer contract-packing services and are familiar with the safety and processing aspects inherent to functional food and dietary supplement production.

For manufacturers purchasing enzymes for use in functional food products, suppliers suggest taking several steps to ensure the enzymes meet the requirements. The Committee on Food Chemicals Codex (FCC) publishes a reference manual including monographs and testing methods for enzymes; the U.S. Pharmacopeia (USP) also publishes standard assays directed more toward pharmaceutical use and animal-derived enzymes. Assays are used to detect enzyme activity, and the assays are specific to the type of enzyme and the source.

Rather than purchasing by weight, enzymes are sold on the basis of potency. Assays evaluate the quantity of hydrolysis that occurs under specific conditions. This includes a range of concentrations, quantities, pH's, temperatures and substrates. Just because a buyer receives 50 mg of papain, he cannot know whether the activity is 1 FCC unit/mg or 50,000 FCC unit/mg.

As consumers become more familiar with the benefits of enzymes, they will start to look for them on the labels of both dietary supplements and functional food products. What manufacturers and suppliers must collaborate on is whether the long-term benefits of functional food products with enzymes will pay off in the nutritional market. "If properly produced, handled and employed, enzymes definitely bring something to the party," Ronsivalli said. "The trick is to know where, when, how and under what conditions to use enzymes for the desired effect."

Editor's Note: Some information sourced from the Enzyme Technical Association (www.enzymetechnicalassoc.org).

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