Customer Reviews

Vitamin Shoppe - Multi Enzyme, 600 tablets

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have come across a number of digestive enzyme products over the years, and am always looking for a potent product for a good price. Vitamin Shoppe's "Multi-Enzyme" formula is pretty potent and fairly priced.

Also, most enzyme products just give the weight of the enzymes and not the activity. This product label has both. The problem with just listing weight is that 1 mg of a 1,000 LU/g (LU=lipase units, a measure of lipase activity) lipase will not digest nearly as much fat as 1 mg of 120,000 LU/g lipase. So it is possible that a 100 mg enzyme formula can actually digest more food than a 500 mg one.

The strength of the enzymes in this formula is as follows:
Pepsin - 1:10,000 (this Pepsin can, in the lab, digest 10,000 times its weight in protein)
Amylase - 57,000 U/g
Lipase - 120,000 LU/g
Papain - 2,000 USP units/mg (not on label, but I asked them)
Protease - 200,000 HUT/g
Bromelain - 600 GDU/g
Cellulase - 20,000 FCC units/g

Take note that one serving is actually two tablets, and the amounts of enzymes listed in the ingredients list are for two tablets, not one. Overall, this is a good formula that is around half the price of Health Food Store enzymes, and is, in some cases, twice as powerful. I have used digestive enzymes for about three years now and the results have been better digestion and fewer digestive problems. The only drawback to this formula is that certain enzymes in the formula are not enteric coated to ensure survival of the enzymes in the acid environment of the stomach. However, newer research suggests enzymes inactivated in the stomach are often reactivated in the intestine.

This product has to be the best supplement me and my wife have tried. Both of us suffer from stomach conditions. I have IBS and she has Crohn's disease. We take 2 pills after every meal and it has helped us be able to digest things much better. My wife had a hard time before eating vegetables or ruffage because the body doesn't break them down well. With the help of this supplement we have been able to eat anything without much trouble.