What is the difference between betaine and betaine hcl

Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights. Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. It is believed to increase stomach acid. In the past, betaine hydrochloride could be found in over-the-counter OTC digestive aids as a source of hydrochloric acid, a key component of stomach juices that some people are low on.

Although you can still find betaine HCL in the form of a dietary supplement, few studies have been done to elucidate what effects it may have. Betaine hydrochloride is commonly marketed as a supplement that can be taken for a slew of conditions, but little research exists on its purported health benefits. Some healthcare providers may recommend betaine HCL as a source of hydrochloric acid for people who do not produce enough of it due to a health condition called hypochlorhydria.

Otherwise, despite many claims from promoters and alternative medicine healthcare providers, there is insufficient evidence that betaine HCL can be taken for any of the following reasons:.

While betaine HCL does deliver hydrochloric acid, research has only revealed a short-term effect on stomach acid content. This may help counteract the effect of certain drugs and in turn aid in the absorption of other drugs, per a study. More research is needed to elucidate many potential health benefits of betaine hydrochloride supplements. Because betaine HCL can boost the amount of hydrochloric acid in your stomach, it may irritate stomach ulcers or prevent them from getting better.

Betaine hydrochloride supplements are available in the form of tablets or capsules and can also be bought in bulk as a powder, which is more absorbable. Currently, there is no recommended dosage for betaine HCL. As such, the amount found in supplements can vary quite a bit.

With their help, you can make an educated decision in light of any potential risks or medication interactions based on your personal medical history. Your healthcare provider can guide you toward the best dosage for your needs and recommend a trustworthy manufacturer certified by a third party such as the U.

Remember: Companies cannot claim that a supplement can treat, diagnose, cure, or alleviate the effects of a disease, per the FDA. How long does it take betaine HCL to work? Betaine HCL can rapidly affect stomach acid levels, with a measurable albeit short-term impact within three to six minutes, per a study published in Molecular Pharmaceutics.

Overview and Key Difference 2. What is Betaine 3. What is Betaine HCl 4. Summary — Betaine vs Betaine HCl. Betaine is a modified amino acid compound containing glycine with three methyl groups. These methyl groups can serve as a methyl donor in several metabolic processes and is also useful in treating rare genetic causes of homocystinuria. It is abbreviated as BET and is an amino acid that has potential benefits for fighting heart diseases, improvement of body composition, and helping the promotion of muscle gain and fat loss.

Betaine can be identified as a neutral chemical compound having a positive charged cationic functional group e.

Therefore, we can identify betaine as a specific type of zwitterion. Typically in biological systems, there are naturally occurring betaines that serve as organic osmolytes. They work more slowly than antacids and are intended to last for longer periods of time. On the down side, they stop production of pepsin, a digestive enzyme necessary for breaking down protein. Proton pump inhibitors permanently block an enzyme that tells your stomach to produce acid.

All of these methods are linked to serious side effects and can even contribute to the root causes of continued chronic low stomach acid and other serious health conditions. The good news is multiple options exist for testing stomach acid levels, which will help you create a clear game plan for remedying the situation at its foundation.

Gastric acid secretion test. Highly invasive and expensive, this test is typically done if a patient is diagnosed with a stomach ulcer. It can be helpful to track if anti-ulcer medication is working and to see if material from the intestines is coming back into the stomach.

The Heidelberg Stomach Acid Test. Considered the gold standard test for hypochlorhydria, a small capsule with a radio transmitter is ingested to measure the pH of the stomach as you drink a solution with baking soda reduces acidity. The baking soda will naturally neutralize the HCL in the stomach. This test provides a graph showing your specific stomach response to the baking soda challenge, and can help determine if you have hypochlorhydria, hyperchlorhydria high acid , or achlorhydria complete lack of acid.

These are common factors on a metabolic blood panel, typically covered by insurance. A skilled clinician can diagnose hypochlorhydria by taking into account these lab results in combination with your symptoms. Betaine HCl challenge. If you have low stomach acid, you can then take it to help restore your HCl levels. Burning, heat, or heaviness in your chest likely indicate adequate stomach acid levels. It is recommended to repeat the betaine HCl challenge two or three times to confirm your results.

Three positive tests are a good indication of low stomach acid. Baking soda stomach acid test. While not as accurate as the above tests, this is a free at-home test you can use to get an indication of your stomach acid levels. The results can vary from person to person depending on interpretation of the results. Some use it as a baseline measure and to track changes over time. If you have not burped within five minutes, it may be a sign of insufficient stomach acid. Early and repeated burping may be due to too much stomach acid do not to confuse this with small burps from swallowing air when drinking the solution.

Any burping after 3 minutes is an indication of low stomach acid levels. Low stomach acid can be associated with other health issues that have far-reaching consequences. If you suspect low stomach acid, ask our office about testing for the following:.