Our enzyme story began back in the 1920's with Dr. Edward Howell, M.D. He realized the damaging effect from cooking and processing of food on human beings. He learned that an enzyme-based product was needed to replace enzymes which aid in food digestion, but which are lost during cooking or processing of food, if good health is to be maintained.

Through extensive clinical and laboratory research, Dr. Howell developed a way to cultivate and extract certain plant enzymes which had the unique ability to provide activity during all phases of the digestive process. He then added these enzyme-based supplements he created to the diets of his patients. He and other physicians saw the obvious health improvements in these patients. Since then, Dr. Howell continued to research, create, change, and finally produce a digestive enzyme-based formula to meet the growing needs for digestive enzyme supplements.

n.zimes™ PA Plus carries the following unique features:

• It is plant based and thus it is free from any animal related transmitted diseases such as BSE (Mad Cow Disease). It is also suitable for vegetarians.
• It is sourced from the highest quality ingredients and is guaranteed free of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO).
• n.zimes™ PA Plus contains microbial enzymes that are active in the pH range of 2.5 to 10.0. This means that unlike supplemented enzymes of animal origin, n.zimes™ PA Plus starts to work on the food in the upper stomach the moment the food is swallowed. Without the supplement of n.zimes™ PA Plus, food sits in the upper part of the stomach for as long as an hour before gastric secretions begin their action.
• It contains a proprietary blend called n.zimes™ PA which is a Pancreatin Alternative. The enzymic activities of n.zimes™ PA obtained from 360mg (1/4 teaspoon) of n.zimes™ PA Plus are equivalent to that of 2000 mg of Pancreatin. Pancreatin contains extracts from the pancreas of animals that are composed of protease, amylase, and lipase activities. For a century, doctors have successfully used pancreatic enzymes to treat patients with a wide variety of diseases such as inflammatory conditions, rheumatic disorders, allergies, soft tissue trauma, viral infections, arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and autoimmune diseases. The pancreatic enzymes are active only in the narrow pH range of 7.5 to 8.5, an alkaline environment found in the small intestine. The advantage of n.zimes™ PA activities over the pancreatic enzymes is that the enzymes in n.zimes™ PA are designed to express activities over a broad range of pH 3.5 to 8.5. They are active in both the acidic environment of the stomach and the alkaline environment of the small intestines. n.zimes PA starts digesting food in the stomach, and continues the process as the food enters the small intestine, ensuring complete digestion of the food.
• n.zimes™ PA Plus contains a complete spectrum of enzymes necessary for digesting a broad range of foods. It contains:
  (a) A variety of proteolytic enzymes which help to break down proteins at different optimum pH levels (effective in the broad pH range of 2.5-10). This enables protein digestion to begin further up in the upper stomach where pH is lower, and to continue in the higher pH environment of the small intestines.
  (b) A variety of carbohydrolytic enzymes which help to digest various forms of carbohydrates, like maltose, sucrose, glucose, fructose, complex sugars found in vegetables, grains as well as legumes. '
  (c) Lactase to help digest lactose found in dairy products, `
  (d) Lipase that helps to break down oils and fats.
  (e) A variety of fiber-hydrolyzing enzymes that help to break down the fibrous cell walls present in grains, fruit, and vegetables. These help to release the nutrients within and enable the absorption of the resulting smaller molecules. They also help to prevent gas formation in the in intestines

It is well established that supplementary digestive enzymes can provide substantial benefit to the digestive process. However, it now being recognized that these same enzymes can have a positive impact on other systems in the body as well. Though the original research on enzymes and immunity dates back to the 1930s, it has only been in recent years that the various mechanisms involved have begun to be elucidated.

At one time it was thought that the specialized cells lining the intestines prevented penetration by large food molecules; but it is now known that large molecules can pass through the intestinal wall and enter the bloodstream. One of the best ways of preventing he absorption of these large molecules is through the complete breakdown of food, especially protein, into its smallest components prior to absorption. Unfortunately, because of the over consumption of cooked food, most people's own enzyme systems are not capable of effectively breaking down this quantity of large food molecules, thus resulting in some of these molecules being absorbed intact through the intestinal wall. In addition, there are a number of factors that can further hinder this process of complete breakdown of food.

Eating too fast, not thoroughly eating under stress, and even the over-use of antacids an inhibit the proper functioning of the body's own digestive enzymes. As a result an increased amount of undigested or partially digested food passes through the small intestine. This absorption of large food molecules causes a condition called intestinal hyperpermeability, or "Leaky gut syndrome". Some of these macromolecules known to be absorbed include lactalbumin, ovalbumin, globulin proteins, ferritin, and even whole viruses. When absorbed into the bloodstream, some of these molecules (protein fragments or peptides) are seen by the body's immune system as foreign, and an immune response is triggered, producing the symptoms of an allergy (like skin rashes, acne, eczema, asthma, rhinitis, sinusitis, hay fever, etc). These circulating molecules can also damage the immune system, thus contributing to the development of inflammatory disorders (e.g. bronchitis), autoimmune diseases (like lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, etc.) and food allergies with hosts of symptoms (like autism, Attention Deficit Syndrome, schizophrenia, psoriasis, etc).

n.zimes™ PA Plus, a special supplementary enzymes from plant microbial sources, taken with meals, can provide valuable assistance to the body's own digestive processes. These enzymes are stable and active throughout the pH range of the entire gastrointestinal tract; and therefore can help ensure that food is completely broken down by the time it passes out of the small intestine. By preventing the absorption of these potentially harmful large molecules, supplementary enzymes can alleviate some of the stress and damage to the immune system that these undigested proteins and other large molecules can cause.

Another way that supplementary enzymes can support the immune chewing, system is through their systemic effect. High potency proteolytic enzymes, particularly those derived from Aspergillus oryzae (the source of proteolytic enzymes in n.zimes™ PA Plus) have been shown to be capable of being absorbed intact if given orally between meals. It has been proposed that once these enzymes are in the bloodstream, they may be capable of dissolving any previously absorbed antigenic dietary proteins, potentially decreasing an allergic response. This would further support the proper functioning of the immune system.

• I was on holiday for 4 days, eating all the time and yet didn't put on any weight. It's n.zimes™ PA Plus that helped to make the difference - Patricia Choong of Kuala Lumpur
• It's just fabulous. It provides relief from being bloated -Celeste of Australia
• This product makes it so easy to move my bowels - Jeanne Lim of Kuala Lumpur
• I thought I had no digestion problems until I took n.zimes™ PA Plus after having a late dinner, supper or when I over ate. It's a great digestive aid - Stanley Chong of Kuala Lumpur
• We find n.zimes™ PA Plus to be such a fantastic product. Our 15-year old had skin problem (similar to eczema) on his leg behind the right knee. He often had flare-ups, especially during the night. The itch was so unbearable that he would scratch until the affected part bled. He had been on a healthy diet and we could not identify the food to which he was allergic. So we started to give him n.zimes™ PA Plus after meals (whenever we remembered). His skin problem became totally healed! Our 15-year old says that n.zimes™ PA Plus is his "life saver". In fact, all our family members love this product - HC of Sabah