📣 Discussion Topic: What questions and/or advice do you have for taking pancreatic enzymes?

[Skye_MC]

Hi everyone 👋 I hope y'all are doing well. You may have seen a post recently asking about how early you should take enzymes before your meal (and their doctor originally told them 20 minutes before).

This is different from what we recommend, which is that you should take enzymes with the first bite of your meal. The logic behind this is that in a normally functioning pancreas, enzymes aren't secreted until food hits your stomach. So, when you take enzymes with the first bite, it somewhat mimics how your body would naturally use enzymes. There's also less of a risk that the enzymes are digested too soon (before they can help digest the nutrients in your food).

Here's a helpful video if you'd like to learn more about dosing/timing enzymes: mission-cure.org/dosing-pan...

With this question, it made me wonder if there are other things you're curious about in regard to pancreatic enzymes. Or, if you have personal advice for other patients who take them. Feel free to share in the comments!

[Skye_MC Administrator]

One question I've seen is if there are vegan/non-pork pancreatic enzymes available. Unfortunately, there are no FDA-approved pancreatic enzymes that aren't pork-based. There are over-the-counter options that are advertised as a vegan alternative; however, as these are non regulated, it's risky in terms of dosing and what's actually in them.

There is research being done into plant-based enzymes, however! Hopefully, we'll see that come into fruition soon.