Replied By Lisa (Thousand Oaks, Ca, Usa) on 08/19/2012

Replied By Bruno (Westland, Michigan) on 12/12/2012

Replied By Sanjay (India) on 12/10/2014

Does Betaine HCL relieves the problem permanently or temporarily?

Thanks, Sanjay

Replied By Mmsg (Somewhere, Europe) on 12/10/2014

Replied By Bill (San Fernando) on 12/10/2014

If you have low stomach acid then the duodenal pancreatic enzymes will not triggered by secretin hormone from the stomach because of insufficient gastric acid amount or strength. Incoming pathogens with food are not killed because stomach acid is too weak. So no alkaline bicarbonate juices or enzymes are triggered from the pancreas into the duodenum for Main Stage digestion to occur and the duodenal environment remains dangerously acidic. So the duodenal enzymes are unable to work and do their job digesting food in the duodenum -- which is not alkaline to neutral but is acidic. Food in the duodenum remains acidic and stagnates – thus perpetuating a wonderful breeding ground for all forms of pathogens and disease. The duodenum rejects food giving rise to acid reflux and can develop many other long term problems like Leaky Gut, IBS, Candida, arthritis etc.

To remedy these particular GERD or Reflux problems then everyday you must take the following:

(All given dosages are for adults)

Betaine HCL tablets at every meal(see below for dosage)

Pancreatin enzymes(with papain and bromelain) at every meal

Liquid Kelp Extract(for the iodine) once or twice a day as recommended

Magnesium Chloride(250 mgs) twice a day with meals

Sea Salt(½ tsp per day in a glass of water)

Vitamin B50 complex(once a day) with a meal

Vitamin B12 at least 1000 mcg once a day with a meal

Zinc gluconate (25 mgs) once a day with a meal

Sodium Bicarbonate...An hour after every meal you also should take ¼ - ½ teaspoon of Sodium Bicarbonate or Baking Soda (using Arm & Hammer brand is fine) with water to ensure proper Main Stage Digestion occurs in the duodenum in an alkaline to neutral environment. This protocol will also not affect stomach digestion which actually stops about half an hour after you finish your meal.

When you first start taking Betaine HCL, increase the dose by one tablet at every meal until you get an immediate acidic or burning feeling in the stomach. Then cut back by one or two tablets and stay at that dose. You stomach acid is now at the right acid pH level or strength to trigger proper digestion. Your stomach will absorb the HCL from the betaine and heal stomach acidity problem over time and you will be able to reduce the betaine dose slowly to zero as your stomach heals and helps to attain proper natural acid levels again over time.

The core of the above protocol is just the Betaine HCL supplemented with the pancreatin enzymes(with bromelin and papain) and you can use just these two supplements if you wish. But in my experience I've found that the protocol covers alot more ground and works far better towards a cure with all the other added nutrients mentioned, which are also much needed for proper acidity and proper digestion.

Just to also clarify that the above is a protocol that will cure low stomach acid, GERD(reflux) and digestion problems (eg too thin, underweight). Both Betaine and pancreatin alone should cure the GERD and Reflux issues. But if you have more serious digestion problems as well then I would strongly suggest that you take all the above nutrients as advised in the above protocol.

If you take PPI's(stomach acid inhibitors) that are recommended by doctors then this will hugely lower your normal stomach acid and cause several serious problems;

• The right high acid strength of stomach acid is vital and necessary to kill all germs, pathogens etc incoming with the food you eat. So if you lower the stomach acid by taking PPI's then all manner pathogens and disease will be freely allowed to enter into the intestines. From there they will spread, unhindered, into the body to create disease.

• The correct high stomach acid strength is also needed to hormonally trigger the pancreatic enzymes and juices for correct Main Stage Digestion(MSD) in the upper intestines or duodenum. If the stomach acid amount or strength is too low then MSD will not be triggered and will not occur and the food will just sit there in the duodenum, stagnating and fast breeding pathogens leading to the spread of even more disease.

• Proper main stage digestion is wrecked and you are in danger of becoming too thin.

• Low levels of stomach acid over a long period of time can lead to many other difficult problems and diseases in the intestines – including bacterial or fungal infections, parasitic infections, an impaired immune system, hypothyroid issues and problems with iron in the blood just to name a few.

Replied By Anon (Calif, Usa) on 03/20/2015

So how does betaine HCL work? is it effectively a "bitter" that triggers the stomach to produce more HCL?

Replied By Bill (San Fernando, Philippines) on 03/20/2015

* Main stage digestion is not triggered in the duodenum. There is a vital hormone that is only triggered when the stomach acid reaches its correct pH acid strength. This hormone causes the secretion of the pancreatic hormones which results in main stage digestion properly occurring.

* Healthy levels of stomach acid (at low acid pH) acts in the stomach to kill all bacteria, viruses, parasites and fungus incoming with you food.

So if you you have low stomach acid other bad things happen:

With a low stomach acid condition main stage digestion is not triggered ie the pancreatic enzymes are not released in a bicarbonate solution into the duodenum. The bicarbonates released into the duodenum from the pancreas must also critically act on the stomach chyme to neutralize the acid and to adequately provide an alkaline environment so that the pancreatic enzymes can do their job. For instance chemotrypsin, a pancreatic enzyme, needs a pH of 8 in the duodenum for it to work and do its job. So if there is low stomach acid and no digestion occurring then all manner of of pathogens can also pass freely into the intestines. The undigested food also provides the ideal environment for pathogens to fast-breed in the intestines. And from the intestines these pathogens and their poisons will pass into the blood to cause all manner of disease.

For a more thorough explanation with remedy please see my GERD/Low Stomach Acid protocol here.

What's more, I even looked for real reasons for any person to have high stomach acid. I could only find one disease that causes elevation of stomach acid in humans -- Zollinger-Ellison Syndrome. And this is a very rare disease.

Additionally, and from all the arguments above, I also would say that taking PPI's or stomach acid inhibitors is about the worst and perhaps the dumbest advice that I've ever heard of to cure low stomach acid problems because PPI's will act to further reduce your stomach acid to ZERO. It is also my belief that this apparently trivial low stomach acid problem -- together with its continual misdiagnosis by allopathic doctors -- has been a major cause and propogation of autoimmune diseases today. Not to mention the misery caused to their trusting patients because of their doctor's lack of common sense and excess stupidity.

Betaine is effectively Trimethylglycine. But Betaine is the hydrochloride form. So betaine HCL is just something you take to supply your stomach with HCL so that the stomach can eventually heal itself to produce correct levels of stomach acid(HCL) on its own. Betaine does not digest food -- it creates the proper acid environment so that pepsin, a protease enzyme, can work in the stomach. And correct healthy levels of stomach acid also functions, as I've already mentioned, to kill all pathogens incoming with food. Other chlorides such as magnesium chloride and sea salt(NaCl) will also help to create stomach acid. Other ingredients such as the B Vitamins (particularly B6), magnesium and iodine are also vital to the production of stomach acid.

The last thing to consider is that low stomach acid seems to also frequently be associated with hypothyroid conditions and there's another reason to supplement lugols iodine -- to help the thyroid.

Replied By Kelly (Seattle) on 05/09/2016

So shouldn't one take the betaine HCL an hour or two away from the pancreatin?

Or take the pancreatin maybe a half hour or hour before eating?

Replied By Aly (Alberta) on 12/17/2017

I have systemic candida, now I am on candida diet. I lost a lot weight.

My tongue is very white, sinusitis, dry and itchy skin and eyes.

I started candida cleanse. I can not take a lot supplement because my stomach.

I use:

1.Morning

Aloe-vera + slippery elm1 tsp coconut oil, krill oil, b12, vit b3-5000, vit c-500 mg

2. betaine 650 after meal + 1tsp coconut oil

3.enzyme pancretin with meal+ 1 tsp coconut oil+probiotics

4. I don't know if I have to take a betaine if I eat grain with fish.

if I understand betaine is only taking with meat, but I eat only on dinner.

Also, my big problem, my muscle started to be painful and knot.

I started to take magnesium Cl + epsom salt bath and spray my foot with magnesium oil, I am scared to use on my body because my skin is very dry.

I bought lecithin and sublingual vit b.

I dont know how many time I have to expect to see an improvement?