Nattokinase – the super enzyme from Japan

Superfood and national treasure from Japan

Since ancient times, people in Japan have sworn by the vegetarian cheese called natto – as an everyday dish, but also as a traditional remedy. This plant-based cheese is fermented from cooked or steamed soybeans with the help of the bacterium Bacillus subtilis.

It was not until 1987 that Japanese researcher Hiroyuki Sumi discovered the reason for natto’s outstanding health properties: the protein-splitting enzyme nattokinase. Since then, nattokinase has attracted great attention from research and naturopathy. Not least because numerous Western studies confirm its many positive effects on our health, especially cardiovascular health. (1) (2) (3)

Like the body’s own enzymes plasmin and thrombin, which are involved in blood clotting, nattokinase belongs to the group of proteases, i.e. enzymes that split proteins into smaller building blocks. When taken orally, it passes through the wall of the small intestine and enters the bloodstream, where it is involved in many metabolic processes throughout the entire organism.

Nattokinase, a natural blood thinner

The most important property of nattokinase: thanks to its strong fibrinolytic and thrombolytic activity (i.e. the body’s own dissolution of blood clots), the enzyme contributes to the breakdown of fibrin-containing, unwanted cellular components and thus to the maintenance of normal blood flow. (4) (5) (6)

Nattokinase therefore offers great hope for the prevention and treatment of diseases associated with increased blood coagulability. The insidious thing about these conditions is that functional clotting problems often lead to internal damage long before the actual disease becomes noticeable. (4) Here, nattokinase offers a range of health benefits through its blood pressure-lowering, anti-atherosclerotic, lipid-lowering, antiplatelet, and neuroprotective properties (1).

In naturopathy, the enzyme is therefore used, among other things, to stabilize blood pressure (7), to prevent or treat varicose veins, thrombosis, heart attack, and stroke, in cases of arteriosclerosis (8), but also for diseases that are not necessarily associated with the circulatory system, such as fibromyalgia, endometriosis, chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple sclerosis, or infertility. (9)

Nattokinase as a dietary supplement

Nattokinase is available on the market in various dosage forms, including capsules and powder. The enzyme is either extracted from fermented soybeans or produced in the laboratory using corresponding bacterial cultures, the latter often involving genetic engineering. As an alternative to soy, crab shells or chickpeas are also used in production.

The enzyme isolated and purified with the help of bacterial fermentation has no soy properties and therefore no allergens. If you suffer from a soy allergy and still have concerns, you should find out in advance exactly which food was used as the basis for the nattokinase.

A powerful duo: nattokinase and dandelion

A plant that every child knows and whose true healing power is often underestimated is the perfect partner for nattokinase: dandelion. The small yellow plant has a long tradition in naturopathy and folk medicine. Its root has been used for centuries to stimulate liver and gallbladder function as well as the digestive system, and for immunomodulation. The leaf is considered diuretic and is used as a digestive stimulant due to its bitter compounds. With the help of its natural plant compounds, dandelion also helps flush the kidneys and urinary tract, stimulate circulation, and neutralize acids in our blood. In this way, it helps with detoxification and the rapid elimination of unwanted substances.

Dandelion’s abilities are an essential and therefore extremely useful complement to the strong fibrinolytic properties of nattokinase. Conversely, nattokinase supports the nutritional spectrum of dandelion.

Two partners, then, that are ideally made for each other. Dandelion, known in rural tradition as “meadow ginseng,” has a powerful protective and activating function in liver metabolism, and the fermented product nattokinase is a particularly active enzyme with both digestive and systemic-metabolic effects.