Enzyme supplements are easy to take, as long as you remember a few Digestive Don’ts:

   1. Don’t mix enzymes into high-temperature food.

Mixing or baking enzymes at temperatures above 120 degrees Fahrenheit (48 Celsius) can cause a permanent loss of enzyme activity.

Warm temperatures are fine. Hotter temperatures are not.

The simple rule for mixing enzymes into food or drink is this:

If it’s cool enough for your mouth, it’s cool enough for enzymes. 

   2. Don’t take enzymes as a once-a-day product

There is often a misconception that digestive enzymes may be taken in the morning and last all day.

Take your enzymes near the beginning of the meal that you want to break down.

The food and enzyme mix will churn in the stomach for a few hours. Then it all empties out together into the small intestine.

When you eat your next meal, that previous enzyme dose will have moved on. When in doubt about the timing, take another dose.

   3. Don’t use just any enzyme with any food.

When an enzyme product is described as a digestive supplement, that doesn’t always mean it will help with every meal. 

Each type of enzyme is specific in what it will break down. Read labels carefully to determine whether your enzyme product has the correct enzyme for your concern.

For example, let’s say you want a product for your intolerance to the carbohydrate in milk known as lactose. If a product that is advertised to help with carbohydrates doesn’t specifically include the lactase enzyme, it won’t help at all with your lactose intolerance. 

With these 3 guidelines, enzymes will do the work they are designed to do — every time you take them.