Chewable DGL in general is great but this product is in gel-caps, NOT in the form of chewable tabs
Most people have to deal with the annoyance of hyperacidity and burning stomach, and for some people it's not an occasional occurrence but a chronic thing. Usually what people do to deal with burning stomach or heartburn is to take antacids like Tums, Tagamet or Prilosec. All of these medications work by reducing the stomach acidity.<br /><br />Tums contain alkaline ingredients like calcium carbonate that directly neutralizes the HCL acid in the stomach for a short period of time (because obviously then the stomach produces more). Tagamet and Zantac work by blocking the H2 histamine receptors, which regulate the acid production on the stomach. They provide a long lasting reduction in stomach acidity, because they lower the production of acid instead of acting on the acid itself. Prilosec and similar drugs belong to the class of the proton pump inhibitors, which again works by reducing the production of acid by the stomach, in a long lasting, and more aggressive way.<br /><br />One problem that people (including often doctors) don't understand is that when people experience heartburn or burning stomach, it's often not caused by an actual excess of acidity in the stomach, but by a damage of the layer of mucus that protects the stomach lining. The stomach is designed to have a very high acidity, both to digest foods and to protect against pathogens that can be ingested with the food, because most are killed by the highly acidic environment of the stomach. Acids damage tissues so normally there is a layer of acid-resistant mucus that creates a buffer between the acid inside the stomach and the stomach itself. As long as this barrier is in place everything is good.<br /><br />The mucus production, however, can be reduced by several different factors, like use of aspirin and similar NSAIDs, stress, steroid drugs, etc. If the protective mucus is reduced, the stomach lining will become vulnerable to the corrosive action of the stomach acids, which will create burning, pain, etc.<br /><br />It seems clear that the best approach is to increase the production of protective mucus, rather than reducing the stomach acidity, yet all the official therapies focus on reducing the stomach acidity. This, by the way, is a terrible idea (unless it's a legitimate case of hyperclorridia or excessive stomach acid) because not only does it make you more vulnerable to food borne pathogens, but it can contribute to an overgrowth of H. Pylori, if that's already an issue for you. Helicobacter Pylori is a bacteria commonly found in the stomach that can overcolonize lead to stomach ulcers. H Pylori prevents a less acidic environment, and it can actually reduce the ph of the stomach acid. So, if you are taking anything to reduce stomach acid, you are actually doing H Pylori a favor, for which it will repay you with some excruciating ulcers.<br /><br />Additionally, reducing stomach acid also impairs your digestion and assimilation of vitamins and nutrients. Vitamin B12, for instance, requires a certain acidity for it to be absorbed. Same thing for iron and many others.<br /><br />The only thing that is known to increase the production of the protective stomach mucus is licorice, which DGL is made from. (By the way, I am talking about REAL licorice, not the fake &#34;licorice&#34; flavored candies that are actually flavored with anise and bear no resemblance to real licorice.)<br /><br />Why not just take licorice, you might be asking. Since licorice can increase blood pressure (which for some people is a concern), DGL is licorice that has the blood pressure raising chemical removed to provide a 100% safe supplement.<br /><br />When I got this brand of DGL, upon opening the seal and taking out the pills I immediately noticed a problem: they are not chewable tabs like I was used to, they are gel-caps made to be swallowed. If you read online, almost all the sources mention the fact that DGL licorice extract needs to come in touch with saliva to be really effective. Apparently there is something in the enzymes from the saliva that has a synergic effect with DGL.<br /><br />I've not been able to find a proper clinical trial to support this claim about the need of saliva enzymes for DGL to be effective, so I will take it with a grain of salt, even though there seems to be a universal consensus about this fact.<br /><br />I do seem to notice, however, that this kind of DGL is less effective than the chewable tabs I was used to, so there might be something to it.<br /><br />At the same time I'm considering the possibility that my mind is playing tricks and is making me feel like this product is less effective because I know that it should be less effective. Because of this, and because it's a very good supplement (no fillers, no extra ingredients) I don't want to penalize this product too much and I decided to give it 4 stars. If I'm gonna find some hard evidence of the saliva theory I will lower the rating accordingly.<br /><br />If this product doesn't help, then I highly recommend you try the chewable DGL, which is what I normally use, and find quite effective.<br /><br />If you found my review helpful, please click yes below, I would really appreciate it!
Rating: 4 stars