How does Bromelain, the PINAPPLE enzyme, work? #2

Bromelain is an enzyme complex extracted from the stem of the pineapple plant. It contains as its main constituent proteolytic enzymes and small amounts of other types of enzymes, together with very small amounts of organic compounds contained in the pineapple plant. Dr. Steve Taussig, Bromelain expert, says: “Not the protease by itself, but these substances together with the protease seem to be responsible for the beneficial effects of bromelain. The proportions between these constituents of the Bromelain vary according to the variety of pineapple, the season the plant is harvested, the geograpic location, and the method of manufacture of the enzyme.

In the past 35 years, several hundred medical papers have been published on the action of bromelain in healing and preventing a wide variety of diseases. All these studies were carried out with the bromelain from Hawaii, because only Hawaiian bromelain existed. Today, bromelain products are manufactured in many parts of the world like in Taiwan, Brazil and Puerto Rico. Dr. Taussig stresses that the proportions of the different constituents of Bromelain vary because of this. So it is important to get a good quality Bromelain product, where the Bromelain is not only effective for digestive disorders, but also as an anti-inflammatory agent, to prevent blood platelet aggregation and for prevention and healing potential in adjunctive cancer therapy. Therefore, it must be tested in tumor cell cultures (“in vitro”).

Bromelain is effective against many chronic degenerative diseases that are caused by ongoing stress. Bromelain has been studied and found useful in the treatment of many stress related conditions like acute inflammation from accidents, chronic inflammations like arthritis, hemorrhoids, thrombophlebitis and gastrointestinal diseases like ulcers, colitis, gastritis or diverticulitis. Moreover, it helps to absorbe nutrients from foods and supplements, and helps the absorption of some antibiotics like penicillin and tetracycline, so that you need less.

Everybody has a special individual tolerance barrier against stress: this is the amount of stress a person can tolerate without any harm to her or his health. If the body faces more stress than it can handle, it produces hormones with the task to inform the body about the danger and set it into a state of alarm. Theses substances circulate in the blood stream and stimulate pain receptors that cause uneasyness. When the stress stops, these substances are automatically eliminated, and substances that can cause healing can start to work. But, when stress continues for months or even years, these alarm substances are produced and released continuously and finally cause problems. They harm the body at its weakest point.

In this way, most of the chronic degenerative illnesses originate. These illnesses can be found at the heart, the joints, the digestive system, and they lead to arthritis, blood clots, cancer or tumors.

The hormone like substances that are released if under stress are called prostaglandines. There are two main groups with opposite effects: the “alarm-prostaglandins” Thromboyane A2 that causes inflammation and pain in order to signal a problem. They cause redness, swelling, constriction of vessels and decrease of tissue permeability, althogether these symptons are typical for an inflammation. Then, there are the “anti-inflammation-prostaglandins” or “healing-prostaglandins” Prostacyclin that promote the healing process. Both groups are released in very small quantities. They regulate and balance out most of the body functions. In a healthy body, there is a very fine balance between these two prostaglandin-groups. If there is a disruption of the balance with a greater amount of “alarm-prostaglandins”, the healing process is delayed or becomes impossible.

Bromelain is a selective inhibitor of prostaglandins. It hinders the production of too big quantities of the “alarm-prostaglandins” and restores a balance between the two groups of prostaglandines. Bromelain inhibits the formation of the alarm prostaglandins and allows the healing prostaglandins to work more rapidly. The natural defence system of the body, its immune system, can work properly again, and the healing process can proceed. This is a very simple picture of what is really going on in the body, but it explains the basic working principle of Bromelain.

All synthetic drugs that suppress inflammation, and prevent blood clotting, are inhibitors of all prostaglandines, they cannot differentiate between them. The difference between synthetic and natural prostaglandine inhibitors like Bromelain is, that the synthetic ones are very powerful and inhibit the production and the release of both types of Prostaglandines, whereas the natural work selective and disturb only the formation of the “alarm-prostaglandines”. The difference is like the difference between trying a complicated mechanism with a huge hammer instead of a fine screw-driver.

Moreover, Bromelain is a digestive enzyme which works specifically on protein. Unlike other protein digestive enzymes, Bromelain works effectively in all acid and alcaline conditions found in the intestines.

What does Bromelain as well? It inhibits the clumping of blood platelets. These clots become very dangerous causing heart attackts or strokes. Moreover, it thinnens the blood.

The Bromelain dilemma

Bromelain has been available commercially since the late 1950´s. The dilemma of Bromelain lays hidden in these facts: On the one hand, Bromelain is a natural medecine, and hundreds of scientific studies have proven that it can prevent and heal a lot of severe diseases. The studies confirmed its usefulness in arthritic and gastrointestinal conditions as well as beneficial effects in surgery, dentistry and geriatric patients. It doesn´t have any toxic side effects, is inexpensive and available everywhere over the counter without any priscription from a doctor. Though eating raw pineapple is also a good way to take in Bromelain, it is hard to obtain sufficient amounts as a therapeutic agent.

On the other hand, the “Food and Drug Administration” (FDA) hasn´t yet recognized it officially, and therefore only few doctors priscribe it.

Bromelain does not have the recognition, because no pharma company has applied for recognition so far, and the reason is not, that it does not work. The main aim of a pharma company is not to help or heal humans, but to make profits. If a product also makes people healthy again, this is a minor aim of its activities. This is not criticizing this business, it is just describing how it is.

In order to recognize a medecine you have to spend up to 100 million dollars, and it takes eight to ten years of time to do all the necessary scientific double-blind placebo-controlled studies. Under theses conditions, it becomes understandable why a pharmaceutical company is hesitating so much with a product it cannot possess because it is already well known and can be copied easily.

This does not alter my statement that Bromelain is an important and outstanding healing remedy which can elevate and even heal the suffering of people with chronic degenerative diseases. For diseases where there is not any other healing possilbe at the time being.

Peace and Love

The Hipsterguru