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Q25-How do enzymes affect our endocrine system?
Cooked foods (devoid of enzymes because they are cooked) cause the endocrine glands to become overworked. This could lead to diseases such as hypoglycemia, diabetes, and obesity. The endocrine system (especially the thyroid gland) and the brain (more specifically the hypothalamus) work together in regulating the appetite. The glands know when we have had enough to eat (called satiety) and will shut off the feeding center in the brain. Eating raw food takes the stress off the endocrine system. If the enzymes that usually accompany food aren't present because they were over-cooked, the glands, not finding these nutrients (calories), over-stimulate the digestive organs, demanding more food than is needed to maintain our health. This results in the over-secretion of hormones, overeating, obesity, and finally exhaustion of the hormone producing glands, not to mention the depleted enzyme reserve trying to carry on the increased metabolic activity.
Over-stimulation of the pituitary gland (called the leader of all the endocrine glands) will cause a false feeling of well-being. Eating enzyme-free foods could also cause other organs like the pituitary, the thyroid, the adrenals, and the reproductive glands, which are not directly involved in digestion to also be hindered. It is important to realize that enzymes, the circulatory system, nervous system, endocrine system, and the digestive system are connected and interdependent in life processes. |
