Digestive enzymes (proteins in the body) help break down your food into smaller parts so your body can use it more easily.1 Usually, digestive enzymes are produced in different parts of the body, like the mouth (where digestion begins), stomach, pancreas, and small intestine. These digestive enzymes are "endogenous" (made in the body). Sometimes the body doesn't make enough of these endogenous enzymes or can't use them properly. In this case, people would take digestive enzymes to replace them. The following are examples of digestive enzymes.