Enzyme Advance (Formerly Primary Digest) 90 Tablets

A digestive aid designed to enhance the breakdown and assimilation of proteins, carbohydrates and fats and can help to alleviate impaired digestive functions that can lead to diarrhea, indigestion and heartburn.

Betaine hydrochloride is a form of hydrochloric acid that is derived from beets. It is commonly used as a digestive enzyme by individuals who do not produce adequate levels of gastric hydrochloric acid for protein digestion. It has been estimated that approximately 30% of elderly adults have insufficient production of hydrochloric acid from the parietal cells in the lining of the stomach. The clinical terms for people with limited or a lack of hydrochloric acid secretion are hypochlorhydria and achlorhydria. Insufficient production of gastric hydrochloric acid can also negatively influence the body's ability to absorb many nutrients. Consequently, low levels of hydrochloric acid can be a contributing factor in numerous other clinical conditions such as asthma, atherosclerosis, candida yeast infections, gastritis, and rhuematoid arthritis. Although betaine hydrochloride may be a beneficial therapeutic component in treatment protocols for these conditions, scientific studies with betaine HCI have not been conducted in these areas.