Lactose intolerance is a relatively common digestive issue in which individuals can't consume many dairy products without uncomfortable gastrointestinal symptoms. There's a common misconception that because lactose intolerance is due to an enzyme deficiency, papaya enzymes can help alleviate the problem. Unfortunately, while this would be a convenient and simple fix for the problem, it simply isn't effective.
Lactose Intolerance
If you have lactose intolerance, the reason you can't consume most dairy is that you lack an enzyme called lactase. Normally, the intestines produce lactase, and use it to break lactose -- also called milk sugar -- into smaller pieces that the body can absorb. You can't absorb lactose unless it's been digested by lactase, meaning that if you lack lactase, lactose in milk and other dairy products passes through to your lower intestine undigested. There, bacteria digest the lactose, producing large quantities of gas, explain Drs. Reginald Garrett and Charles Grisham in their book "Biochemistry."
Enzymes
To understand why papaya enzymes can't help you with lactose intolerance, you need to know that enzymes are very specific with regard to their action. Your digestive system requires many different kinds of enzymes to digest your food, and each can digest only a very specific type of nutrient. Enzymes that digest protein, for instance, can't digest sugar. Furthermore, enzymes that digest table sugar can't digest milk sugar, explain Dr. Mary Campbell and Dr. Shawn Farrell in their book "Biochemistry."
Papaya Enzyme
Papaya enzyme, also called papain, is a protease, meaning that it's a protein-digesting enzyme. For this reason, papaya has been used as a meat tenderizer -- marinating meat in papaya helps to break down the proteins in the meat and makes tough cuts more tender. Papaya enzyme has no ability to digest carbohydrates or sugars of any kind, however -- they can't digest lactose, and therefore can't alleviate symptoms of lactose intolerance.
Other Options
If you have lactose intolerance and are looking to consume dairy without uncomfortable symptoms, there is an enzyme that can help you -- lactase. While you can't make your body produce it, you can take lactase supplements in the form of a pill or tablet. Furthermore, you can use dairy that has been treated with lactase to "pre-digest" the lactose. While this can make milk and other dairy products taste a bit sweeter, by breaking lactose down into its constituent components, lactase added to dairy allows you to consume the food products and absorb the nutrient compounds.
References
- "Biochemistry"; Reginald Garrett, Ph.D. and Charles Grisham, Ph.D.; 2007
- "Biochemistry"; Mary Campbell, Ph.D. and Shawn Farrell, Ph.D.; 2005
