A veggie cap can cause stomach discomfort, gas, and bloating. If you’ve ever reacted to certain supplements, the capsules containing them may be the culprit.
So-called ‘vegetable capsules’ were created in a misguided attempt to replace those nasty, animal-based gelatin capsules that supplements used to come in. This move has been more harmful than helpful, because ‘veggie caps’ are not as natural as the supplement manufacturers want you to believe.
I may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.
A Personal Experiment
You CAN do this at home.
I never even considered that veggie caps could be a problem. That is, until I did a simple experiment. It started with the observation that when I took a boatload of supplements at one time, I got NASCAR-fast burning diarrhea racing through me. Frankly, this kept me from taking my supplements as regularly as I would have liked.
I always suspected vitamin C as the culprit, since this is a common side effect of taking too much of this vitamin without building up tolerance to it.
For some reason, though, I started to wonder about all the veggie cap material that I was also taking with my supplements. To check out this out, all I did was disassemble all of my supplement capsules and dump their contents into a liter of water. This is what I drank down over a few hours and … VOILA! … discovered that it caused no digestive problems whatsoever.
Hmm.
Of course, in this Age of Google, I soon found forums and blog comments where lots and lots of other folks reported the same difficulties when taking supplements in veggie caps.
Now for the Shocker
All of the following sentiments about veggie caps are absolutely untrue!
“Veggie caps are easily digested.”
“Veggie caps are all natural.”
“Veggie caps are soooo much better for you than gelatin caps.”
These are marketing-based claims designed to feed the oversimplified beliefs of the “plants are cleaner” crowd.
Here is what I found out to be the real truth about veggie caps.
They are made of a substance called hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, which is described as follows on Wikipedia:
Hypromellose, short for hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), is a semisynthetic, inert, viscoelastic polymer used as an ophthalmic lubricant, as well as an excipient and controlled-delivery component in oral medicaments, found in a variety of commercial products. As a food additive, hypromellose is an emulsifier, thickening and suspending agent, and an alternative to animal gelatin.
Got all that? Here is some more enlightenment.
The driving reason behind the creation of veggie caps was to provide a substitute for gelatin caps. Gelatin is derived from collagen, which comes from animals. Remember the good old days, when Jell-O was a great gelatin-based treat? Fast forward to modern times, whereby collagen-based supplements are wonderful for the health of our joints, bones, skin, and nails. Yup, plain old Jell-O was the first collagen supplement.
Gelatin is easily digestible. If not, then generations of children would have suffered untold digestive harm from constant diarrhea and its consequent dehydration. Deadly.
The Reality of Veggie Cap Chemistry
Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose is made by starting with cellulose, which comes from plants. Cellulose is completely indigestible by humans. Altering cellulose by adding hydroxy, propyl, and methyl moieties does nothing to change that.
Veggie caps are therefore 100% indigestible!
HPMC is what we call a ‘semi-synthetic’ substance. It is not a natural substance!
Indigestible, semi-synthetic substances are not necessarily inert. In fact, they often provide fuel for colon bacteria that can digest a lot of things that pass through our system untouched. This is apparently what happens to veggie caps. That may not seem so bad until you realize that a colon bacterial bloom creates metabolic gases and acids that result in bloating and diarrhea.
This is why veggie caps are NOT better for you than gelatin caps!
What is Actually Better for You?
Gelatin capsules. Plain and simple.
Our bodies already have the ability to digest, absorb, and reassemble collagen. That’s why eating Jell-O always made for better nails. That’s why collagen supplements support the health of bones, joints, skin, and nails.
Ultimately, that is why gelatin capsules are superior in every way to veggie caps when it comes to health benefits.
What to Do
You can do several things to reduce your consumption of veggie caps when taking supplements.
- Since supplements in veggie caps are hard to avoid, then do what I do. Disassemble each veggie cap and dump the contents into a glass of water. You can mix all of your supplements together that way.
- Buy bulk powders whenever you can.
- Buy supplements in softgels. Softgels are still made from gelatin.
- Buy supplements that are already in liquid.*
*The main caveat for liquid supplements is to watch out for other ingredients, especially sweeteners. Most non-sugar sweeteners will act on our system the same way that veggie caps to.
Best Practices
My first choice for supplements is always based on how I can take them without consuming veggie caps. As mentioned above, this is fairly simple by removing capsule contents and mixing them in water, most easily in a shaker cup. It does take a while since I use as many daily supplements as I do.
Of course, the best and most convenient practice is getting powdered supplements in the first place, especially if they don’t contain added sweeteners and food dyes.
Finding just the right powders can still be a challenge. The keys I look for include: dosages, forms of each vitamin (e.g., folate is much preferred over folic acid), and inclusion of the four most important minerals (magnesium, zinc, iodine, selenium).
There aren’t very many products that measure up to my standards. However, a really top brand is this one by Metabolic Maintenance here:
If you like that product as much as I do, and you order from Amazon by clicking on that image, Jeff Bezos will send me a small commission for referring you. Nice guy, huh?
More ‘Buyer Beware’ Stuff
Not all supplements are what they’re cracked up to be. And not everyone really needs a cartload of them.
Deciding what you need and what the best sources are may seem overwhelming. Just keep up as much a you can by reading and studying good information. Although I may be biased, I really like what I have to say about this topic.
You may, too. See what you think about these examples.
Do You Really Need Nutritional Supplements? Maybe.
Multivitamins – The Good, The Bad, The Ugly
Ultimately, regardless of how you reduce or eliminate veggie caps from your supplement protocol, you will be better off when you do so.
All the best in natural health,
Statements on this page have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
This is great info. I just feel horrible when I take a lot of veggie caps. It feels like a big gelatinous lump in my digestive system and it makes me feel nauseous and really weird. So I’ve been doing what you describe for a long time; however some herbs are so positively disgusting (rhodiola for example) that the powder literally makes me almost vomit. So I wish there was a better alternative when it’s super gross. I’m a vegetarian for ethical reasons so I don’t want to take veggie caps.
Hi, Rebecca:
I suspect that you and I are not the only ones having challenges with veggie caps. You are also spot on about how awful some supplements are to get down. Turmeric might even be worse than rhodiola. I know that MSM certainly is. I don’t have an ideal strategy yet. At this time I empty my supplement capsules into water, add a little liquid Stevia, and either slug it down or sip it over a few hours. It still tastes terrible, and sometimes my stomach gets upset anyway. In spite of this issue, it is better than most liquid forms of supplements, since they often have sweeteners that I simply won’t consume. Ah, for the sake of good health!
All the best,
Dennis
Dennis! As one who reads all of my labels even on my supplements, I saw hypromellose didn’t know what it was and it led me to your site. Thank you so much you have enlightened me I appreciate this immensely I like everything else that’s in the supplement so I will do what you recommended which is to empty it into water and take it that way I don’t mind the weird Taste of different supplements I’m used to it because I do that with other things. So thank you again I will pass this information on to many. Yours in health, Susan Kindler, LMT
Hi, Suezen:
I am very happy to be helpful on this topic. Thank you for your kind comments and commitment to spreading the word on veggie caps. Another (unacceptable) alternative is liquid supplements. They are routinely adulterated with awful sweeteners and other flavors. I suppose you and I will just have to put up with the ‘interesting’ flavor of capsule contents in water. One thing I do occasionally is add a half teaspoon of MSM powder. That stuff is so bitter that it cancels out the other tastes from supplements. Yummy!
All the best,
Dennis
Thank you for this info. I will be looking to read what material the capsules actually are from now on.
Hi, Loretta:
That’s generally a good strategy for weaving through the maze of challenges we have as consumers. Reading labels is a good start. Digging into what the ingredients really are takes it to the next level. Keep it up!
Cheers,
Dennis
Hi Doc,
I’ve struggled with yeast overgrowth for most of my adult life. I was prescribed antibiotics as a kid to treat sniffles that turned out to be a diary allergy. I’ve found Yeast-Cleanse by Solaray to really help, but I can’t handle how are they are to get down. They stick terribly and when I do get them down, I burp them for hours. The contents taste awful, but I can handle that because they help. I just opened open and threw the powder down my throat and chased it with water. It’s already less bothersome than taking the veg cap. My question, does the veg cap serve any purpose? Should the contents be dumped in my stomach all at once? Does the cap act as a time release sort of thing? Thanks so much!
Hi, Rachel: The typical caps start to dissolve withing a few minutes. You can test it by putting one in a glass of water and just watch it. I’m with you on taking powders directly, although not too often. I still prefer putting caps contents and powders into a shaker cup and vigorously ‘make’ them disperse. Easier to swallow that way. Glad you’re figuring this stuff out. The Solaray brand is a good one.
Cheers,
Dennis
I’m so happy o came across your information. I suffer from from anaphylactic occurrences when I digest any Vitamin that is encapsulated in a “vegetarian capsule.” It was not an isolated incident due to the fact that it happened 3 days in a row and I had to
Immediately take antihistamines. . I have no other allergies. My ears start to itch, my throat and younger swell and my chest tightens immediately after digestion gone of those vitamins. I have been to an allergist and she could not figure out why this is happening. She said she has researched this and has found nothing. I now have an epi-pen In case I Ever unknowingly digest something with the same ingredients. I now take liquid vitamins. Do you have any insight to why this happens? Thanks!
Hi, Terry:
Thank you for your input. I haven’t heard of allergic reactions to hypromellose before. As you know, allergies can be tough to track down. Your awareness seems to have nailed it, though. As far as why it happens, I haven’t dug into it. A quick search came up mostly with allergic reactions to hypromellose in eye drops. I still take my supplements either as powders or as capsules whose contents I dump into my shake. Those ‘veggie caps’ are awful!
All the best,
Dennis
Off subject, kinda… but just FYI I was on antibiotics as a kid for 17 years for same thing, and as an adult I always thought I had yeast or candida overgrowth, which yes, but due to constipation from bacteria imbalance- which was due to antibiotic use of course…
Probiotic therapy, milk thistle and colonics was the answer!
(Sorry couldn’t help but chime in! Not much info out there for childhood antibiotic use)
Thanks for that comment, Logan. I wish more people would take on recovering from over-use of antibiotics like you are.
Cheers,
Dennis
Thanks so much; I found out about hypromellose the hard way. But they are also putting wood fibers in capsules & calling them vegan. Maybe this works for beavers, but it sure didn’t work for me!
You’re right, Cindy. Terminology can be tricky when you pull back the curtain and see its implications. I never tired of pointing that out to my students when they asked whether something was natural. My comment usually went along the lines of … well, we have some rattlesnakes nearby whose venom is all natural. And Socrates died due to an all natural substance in poison hemlock. You get the idea.
Cheers,
Dennis
I’ve found that a quarter teaspoon of powdered Vit C (ascorbic acid) and a dash of Stevia added to the glass of water(12 oz or so) that is mixed with other unpleasant powdered supplements like MSM will make it all more palatable. I suppose there’s a probably only so many nasty flavors you can add before the C and Stevia is overwhelmed, though.
Gotta love Stevia, Bob!
As you know, drinking a solution of MSM is super bitter – a lot like drinking tonic water (without the gin!). I also find quite a few herbs and extracts to taste awful.
Stick to it, though. If the old adage is true about medicine always tasting bad, then the supplements we take are good for us!
Cheers,
Dennis
Try taking them in a high quality protein drink or other tasty drink, preferably something with body out thickness.
SK…Thanks for the suggestion. I have been looking for a good base liquid for dumping my capsule contents into. The best I’ve found so far is a greens powder that has some good flavor, mixed into water. Powders from capsules still clump up a little, though. My shaker cup has a little wire ball that breaks up the lumps somewhat. An improvement, although not ideal yet.
Cheers,
Dennis
I put mine in a tablespoon of yogurt this morning and it wasn’t to terrible. Just ate it quick.
Nice creativity, Peggy. That’s what it takes sometimes. -Dennis-
There is another vegeterian market alternative, it’s called Pullulan capsules. These are made from fermented Tapioca starch and no chemical or unnatural compound is involved in the process of manufacturing. Some brands are already starting to offer it.
Miguel…I looked up that ingredient (Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pullulan) and came away impressed. Thanks for the input.
Cheers,
Dennis
Hi Dr Dennis,
I am looking at using these. Have you had further thoughts on the Pullulan?
Thank you
Raquel
Hi, Raquel:
Yes, I’ve dug into pullulan a bit more. I came away wishing all ‘veggie’ caps were made with it instead of with hypromellose. At least with pullulan, the sugar-to-sugar bonds are digestible with our own enzymes. Now the challenge is finding enough supplements to fit the bill. Until then, I’ll just keep buying powders or supplements I can break open to dump their contents into a shake.
Cheers,
Dennis
Thanks for this information. I didn’t realize that Pullulan was Tapioca starch. I thought it was another trade name for the cellulose ones. They should make that clear on the front label since I have a product with those capsules and it just says Vegan capsules on the front.
You got a whiff of some skullduggery, Bob … specifically, ‘vegan’ can mean a lot of things, even if the substance is semi-synthetic like veggie caps.
Cheers,
Dennis
I use supplements in veggie caps.
They don’t make me sick but if they are indigestible I have to do something about it.
They are too expensive and important to not be digested in my stomach.
Is the bottom line that the supplement’s will not begin digesting in my stomach but rather pass through the intestinal track because of the veggie caps?
Hi, Lawrence:
You pretty much nailed it. Veggie caps are indigestible for our native enzymes. However, once that material passes into the colon, normal intestinal bacteria there will start to break it down. The excess gas and acid from such a bacterial bloom is behind the bloating and diarrhea that comes from consuming too much of the veggie cap material. If you don’t have those symptoms, then you are probably off the hook. The good news is that veggie caps dissolve fairly quickly, so any supplements they contain will be released, starting in your stomach. You can do a little experiment to confirm this. Just put a capsule in water, maybe with a little vinegar, and watch how long it takes to dissolve. It should dissolve within minutes, certainly no more than a half hour.
All the best,
Dennis
Thank you much Dennis.
This information is very useful as Joe Mercola mentioned this briefly but didn’t detail enough.
I was worried and have been cutting the gell caps open ever since.
Kind Regards,
Lawrence
You are welcome, Lawrence. I am glad to be of help.
Cheers,
Dennis
Dr. Dennis,
I just wanted to take time to inform you that the test with the veggie cap in water with a little vinegar went well.
The cap began to dissolve and break open at 12 minutes.
Thanks again for your help with my dilemma.. !!
Larry
I hereby christen you a self-hacking scientist. Glad to hear of your results, Larry. Thanks for the update.
Cheers,
Dennis
You said two things: that veggie caps are indigestible and also that they dissolve fairly quickly.
Which is true? or if both,
would this mean that once dissolved the substance itself passes on through?
Thank you, froggymartin
Hi, froggymartin…I suppose that I wasn’t too clear on that one, was I? Here’s what to know: we don’t have any enzymes to break up the semi-synthetic veggie cap material, so it is indigestible. On the other hand, veggie caps can dissolve fairly quickly in ordinary water or in stomach ‘juices’. Even when dissolved, though, it just continues through the GI tract, either until bacteria can break it down or until is passes on through. The trouble comes from bacterial metabolites, including gas and acids. Thanks for the great question!
Cheers,
Dennis
I have been taking Veggie caps and find that I have been bloated and upset stomach. I was thinking of stopping them I found your website trying to find if these may cause bloating in others or is it just me !
Thnak yiu,
Cecelia
Hi, Cecelia: You are spot on in recognizing what happens with you. Others have similar issues. The “veggie cap” crusade (i.e., to avoid gelatin caps, made from animal products) is not as harmless as people think. Once I caught on to what was happening with me – i.e., digestive upsets – I started opening my veggie cap products, discarding the caps, and mixing the contents into a drink. Not very tasty. That solved it. The next issue of concern is the common filler, maltodextrin. I’ll have something to say about that before too long. Thanks for you input.
All the best,
Dennis
As a few other readers have reported, I recently had a bad spell of bloating, excessive gas, among other digestive symptoms I won’t detail here, PLUS joint pain. I started taking a new timed-release methylated B complex that uses “hypromelose SR agent” mixed with the capsule contents, and finally after five days of increasing agony I stopped using them. It took almost three days to get it out of my system, but the during portion I had the same symptoms I get when I’ve been “glutened” or “tapioca-ed.” I just yesterday started back on a methylated B I have used for years without issue, although today I have had some stomach upset again. So I will try your method of consuming the contents with water, but I wonder if you happen to know if consuming B vitamins this way would affect/hinder their absorption or even their delivery to the small intestine? A herbalist I follow recommends mixing B vitamins with kefir and allowing them to ferment overnight- his reasons are sound to me, although I can’t handle dairy either! I’m hoping nothing is lost en route when consumed with water alone.
Hi, EMR…Isn’t it amazing (and disappointing) how some things that are supposed to be good for us actually cause harm? I am glad that you discovered the issues that I found out about veggie caps. I had digestive problems that I finally pinpointed to hypromellose capsules. Saying ‘veggie caps’ is certainly misleading! About your question: no, absorption will not diminish when B vitamins are in water. Indeed, I have occasionally taken them in liquid products. One more item of potential concern for you (and me) is one of the common fillers in capsules – maltodextrin. We would all be better off without ingesting it. Good luck finding capsules without it, though. Oh, about kefir. No need to mix in B vitamins if you have a potent active culture. The bacteria themselves will make many B vitamins. I am with you about dairy, though. In my case, lactose intolerant. Thanks for your input.
All the best,
Dennis
Dear Dr. Clark,
Thanks for your info on the topic of vegan capsules. However, regarding Hypromellose capsules (HPMC), your product Fem Rebalance by VItanica contains capsules made of HPMC. This contradicts your advice.
~Susan
Hi, Susan: Spot on. I couldn’t agree more. Although Vitanica isn’t my company, my online store does list Fem Rebalance and thousands of other products from hundreds of companies that do use veggie caps. Avoiding them is nearly impossible, which is why, for the supplements I take, I empty the capsule contents into water and toss out the empties. It is a hassle, I know. Gel caps, which are from animal sources, also have their issues. Pure unencapsulated powders would be ideal. They are just very hard to find. Thank you for your comment. I wish I had a better strategy for you.
All the best,
Dennis
why has no one designed a non synthetic natural veggie capsule?
Hi, Joel:
That is what I have been wondering, too. We may have a possibility, though. Pure Encapsulations has this label on their Nutrient 950 multivitamin/mineral product (which is the one I use): Other Ingredients: ascorbyl palmitate, vegetarian capsule (cellulose, water). Hypromellose (veggie caps) is made from cellulose, so I have to find out if they are really using just cellulose or its chemical derivative. Reading labels is quite an adventure!
All the best,
Dennis
And if you are allergic to pine, like me, probably from that good ole pine cleaning product in the 70’s and 80’s , then you will be glad to know NOT to take veggie capsules also because the cellulose comes from pine.
Hi, Dee…Good point. I hadn’t thought of the source of the raw ingredients. Thanks for your comment.
All the best,
Dennis
The reason I take veggie caps is because geletin capsules have glyphosate in them unless organic. Glyphosate is the pesticide in Roundup weed killer made by Monsanto/Bayer. Monsanto/B have lost several recent cancer law suits with more in line. All GMO foods contain glyphosate. I am very allergic to it. (as in ER room)
A recent Ceyenne capsule says, “modified vegetable cellulose.”. Do yu know what this means? no way I can swallow Ceyenne.
Hi, Joann…You are spot on with your comment about gel caps. Indeed, glyphosate is nearly all-pervasive. I posted an article about it earlier, here: https://herbscientist.com/glyphosate-toxicity-government-approved-lies-that-keep-on-giving/. Toxicity is much worse than most people realize. My best strategy for avoiding both veggie caps and gel caps is to empty the capsule contents into water, mix well, and drink. For gel caps containing liquid (vitamin E supplements, etc.), I chew them to squeeze their contents out, then spit out the gel cap itself. It is not ideal, just the best I can do for now. (Tablets avoid these issues.) BTW, glyphosate is used heavily on non-GMO crops, too – wheat is a common example. As for your question about “modified vegetable cellulose” – that is just another way of stating what veggie caps are made of. In this case, “modified” refers to the end product, hypromellose (aka, veggie caps), which is made from cellulose. Pretty sneaky, I’d say.
All the best,
Dennis
OMG! I thought I was dying. And the more probiotics I took the worse it got. Thanks so much for the article. In 24 hours all the gas, bloating and diarrhea stopped.
Hi, Dom…That is GREAT news. You made my day, just knowing that my article helped you.
All the best,
Dennis
You are right on.
The supplement industry is a big lie.
Capsules made out of wood fibers can’t be good.
Is it any coincidence that stomach problemas are so common these days?
And people run to buy probiotics….in veggie caps….making things worse….
Thanks, Jeff. Tracking down truths about supplements and natural health is a passion of mine. I am very glad that you and others can benefit from what I discover. Gelatin caps also come with unwanted ‘bonuses’ – i.e., gelatin derived from grain-fed animals harbors glyphosate (https://herbscientist.com/glyphosate-toxicity-government-approved-lies-that-keep-on-giving/). I don’t even like common fillers, such as maltodextrin (loaded with deuterium – that’s another story). More than ever, caveat emptor, is a valuable mantra for consumers of anything and everything.
All the best,
Dennis
Can you give us a source for organic gel caps? I have tried searching but havent come up with anything.
Thanks, Dee
I’m with you, Dee. Lots of companies sell organic gelatin powders, not capsules. I don’t have a source at all for such capsules.
Cheers,
Dennis
What a mess!! Because I read another site on HPMC, I continued to search for more info and found yours. I go to a functional medicine doc. Supplements are prescribed rather than pharma drugs. Each year I have to be tested for food sensitivities. Because of a sensitivity to bovine/cow/beef, I figure the gelatin capsules I take are really taboo although one doc said there wasn’t that much bovine in the capsules to worry about it. However, the other supplements contain HPMC. I have numerous supplements to take and in reality, don’t see myself emptying the contents of each HPMC capsule into water. I will send this site to my doctor’s office to see what I should do. I’m sure they have no idea HPMC can be harmful. I would think the more supplements I take, the more the possibility of harm. Thank you for your article!
Hi, Joan:
I am happy that you found this information here. It was a surprise to me, too. Emptying capsules into a glass of water is, indeed, a hassle. It is worth it to me to escape digestive distress caused by HPMC. One other strategy that I use, when possible, is to use only powders. It is much easier to scoop out what I need. Powders are not widely available for most supplements, though. My wife takes liquids instead of capsules. Liquids have flavorings and sweeteners that make them unacceptable to me. I wish you the best with your doctor so that you can work out a way to minimize the negative impact of capsules.
All the best,
Dennis
I have been re-encapsulating my products for years now. BSE-Free bovine gel caps from grass fed cattle can be found, it just takes effort in searching them out. We have NO issues with gelatin caps whatsoever.
We avoid any and all kinds of cellulose, including microcrystalline cellulose, which is often in the powdered mixes of supplements. Many times we will good product, with the cellulose only in the capsule shell, so those particular supplements are savable. But if it’s in the mix, then the whole thing supplement is ruined. Usually you can tell by reading the labels if it’s in the mix, capsule only, or both. Bulk supplement companies like BulkSupplements or PureBulk will sometimes have the supplements in gelatin capsules, with NO OTHER INGREDIENTS. We buy all those up in large quantities.
All the celluose today being used in nutreceuticals and pharmaceuticals are all nano. The methods are going to a “nano delivery” and this is also being utilized in vaccines/chemtrails and in a lot of health supplements which when consumed aggregate and agglomerate and morph and get activated with almost any form of frequency. And it begins it’s assembling and as a result it densifies even more. Tony Pantalleresco’s website augmentinforce.com has several links on the topic and yes you can get this out but with great difficulty. Cellulase and hemi-cellulase enzymes (totally different!) Will help digest cellulose and start breaking it up. I wrote an article called “Hardening of the Body” which covers this and other forms of buildup like AGEs, cellulose buildup, myxedema, hardened firbrin and more, and the different types of supplements, herbs, and essentials oils to help dissolve and release all this hardening. Also anti-nano buckets and other forms of PEMF devices help move the nano out.
The best way to stop this insanity is to NEVER buy from these companies and/or quit promoting them to begin with. If we all do those two things, then they might just get the message.
Thank you so much for your extensive comment here, Messiah Mews. Your points are well taken. Speaking with our wallets/purses is the best way to be heard. We’d be a lot better off if more manufacturers used BSE-Free bovine gel caps, as you suggest – especially if they can also be glyphosate-free. By the way, an additional drawback of carb-based (“veggie”) caps is their enhanced deuterium content. That is an interesting story that I will write about before too long.
Cheers,
Dennis
Thank you for this information! I too experienced extreme discomfort after consuming a supplement in a veggie cap. Had to stop immediately. So glad to have found this great article about the matter.
Thanks, Ana. I am happy that you and others are discovering this information. Once I explored it, I got the explanation I was looking for when I took supplements, too. (I.e., digestive upset)
All the best in natural health,
Dennis
DR Clark, Is Pullulan ok for a capsule? Ive read it is better than gelatin and veggie.
Hi, Dee…This looks like a better substance that hypromellose veggie caps. It is still hard to digest, although more likely as a prebiotic.
Cheers,
Dennis
Dr Clark,
I have been trying to find out if I can empty my capsules, more for convenience since I take a lot of supplements ( I am 65 so apparently I have lower amounts of everything, so it’s said lol). Also I have become concerned about the ingredients in the capsules myself. One example I was thinking of was the magnesium stearate. My main concern is-are there supplements you know of that would not be metabolized efficiently in the mixed in form and should be swallowed in capsule form. Also, can they be mixed in smoothies or juice instead of water? Would this influence absorption where they are supposed to be absorbed? Thank you for the information- it has opened my eyes.
Hi, Susan: The “inactive ingredients” an any supplement or medication may or may not be inactive. Their roles depend more on making a powder non-clumpy, easy to disperse, and/or more soluble. Magnesium stearate is used for keeping ingredients from sticking together. Not much research on long-term effects, though. In general, mixing in smoothies or water is similar. Digestive juices induced by smoothies may help absorption of added ingredients, though. The jury is still out on that one, too. In general, I have continued to discover how most supplements either are not helpful or have negative consequences. Ascorbic acid (NOT vitamin C!), melatonin, fish oils, folic acid, and many others are just some examples that are not as good as their marketing hype suggests. This is a pretty complicated issue that I am still learning. Maybe I will have it figured out when I hit 100 … well ahead of you, by the way.
“…lower amounts of everything…” – ? That sure seems to be the story for us Baby Boomers, doesn’t it? Of course, if you checked out my Baby Boomers Health Center, you will see that I have a completely different view than the mainstream when it comes to what “normal” aging means. Cheers,
Dennis
Hi again, Susan…How rude of me not to provide a link! (Although I assumed/suspected that you already had seen this): https://babyboomershealthcenter.com/. Have a great new year!
Dennis
What’s wrong with ascorbic acid?
Hi, Agatha: Nothing is directly ‘wrong’ with ascorbic acid. It’s a great antioxidant that serves a whole host of primates, including humans, that have lost the ability to transform glucose into it. However, it isn’t really vitamin C like we’ve been told since the 1940s. It’s a component of vitamin C, which is best obtained from fresh fruits and vegetables (and raw meat).
Cheers,
Dennis
I thought I had read somewhere that this veggie crap could cause liver cirrhosis? I’m under treatment with a naturopathic oncologist and was taking berberine and vita C and all sorts of stuff – but shocked they have this Hypromellose garbage. In the last 6-8 weeks it seemed my guts were balling at taking the stuff, and I tried the pull apart and eat the nasty stuff inside capsule (Mary Poppins was not joking about “a spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down.). But the bit about collagen – I have Great Lake bovine collagen – could I make up a batch and put my supplements contents inside that and shoot em down?
Hi, Julia…I’m sorry to hear of your liver challenges. Regarding your question, I have never heard of hypromellose influencing cirrhosis. It would not surprise me, though. Now, about collagen. The key is to get collagen from organic sources, since it reflects the food of the source animal. If cows or pigs eat modern grains, they will contain glyphosate. Just be wary of it. If you haven’t seen my post on it, see what I have to say here: https://herbscientist.com/glyphosate-toxicity-government-approved-lies-that-keep-on-giving/. I’m with you on the concept of a spoonful of sugar. However, these days I use Stevia instead.
Cheers,
Dennis
Well done! Thanks for posting such great information!!
Well, now, Rebecca…THAT made my day! Many thanks for you kind words.
Cheers,
Dennis
Wow, your article was so informative! I’m so glad that I found your article. Okay, so I’m not going crazy, I suspected that these veggie capsules could be the culprit of my stomach issues! All of my supplements are veggie caps, but I’m not a vegetarian. I started taking veggie caps because they dissolve way faster then the gelatin. The gelatin soft-gels felt like they were just sitting in the bottom of my stomach. Maybe I could find some, BSE-Free Bovine soft gels and give those a try. So Dr. what do you think about flaxseed oil supplements? Is liquid better or softgels? Thanks in Advance!
Hi, Amesha: I’m so glad that you found my article informative and helpful. Regarding your question, I have two strategies. Yes, you can use liquid supplements. Flax oil, of course, simply has to be refrigerated. The other strategy, which I use, is to chew the gel caps to get their contents. Then I spit out the capsule remnant. Softgels and gelatin caps have one other disadvantage. Depending on their source (e.g., domestic feedlot animals), they can contain a substantial amount of glyhphosate (active ingredient of Round-Up). Take a look at my post on this dangerous herbicide here: https://herbscientist.com/glyphosate-toxicity-government-approved-lies-that-keep-on-giving/.
All the best, Dennis
Oh my goodness !
I just can’t begin to tell you how grateful I am for finding this information!
I was popping quite a few of these“vege” caps a day ….in the form of appetite fillers (biggest culprit) …magnesium, and probiotics.
In the last month (possibly as a result of upping the amount) I have suffered with cramps and urgent (loose) stools along with general discomfort & bloating.
I was pretty close to seeking medical advice (as I had all sorts of scary thoughts as to what might be wrong with me !) when I came across your website which gave me the lightbulb moment I needed !
I’ve only ceased taking these for 2 days now and I feel SO much better !
I don’t really need the fillers and the others can be emptied into yogurt as suggested.
There’s really nothing much else out there on the web about this which I find surprising, and so I really am incredibly grateful to you for putting this out there!….many many thanks 🙏🏼 😊
Wow, Julie. Now THAT made my day. I had similar experiences to yours, and I always noticed that my stomach was upset right after I took a few supplements. It was quite a surprise to find that the veggie caps were the culprit. Thanks so much for your kind words. I am grateful that I could point you in the direction of your ‘aha’ moment. Aren’t they fun!
Cheers,
Dennis
Can you empty levothyroxine into water or yoghurt to avoid vegie capsules and still relieve the benefits of the drug. Im allergic to life at the moment and think the vegie capsules are adding to the thyroid issues
Hi, Angela: Great question. Generally, you can deposit any capsule contents into water, although many substances won’t actually dissolve. Clumps and particles will stick to the container, so you won’t get all of it. Mixing it in foods such as yogurt would be more effective, since the substance will disperse throughout the food. Whether it dissolves is immaterial. Sometimes I will just empty a capsule directly into my mouth. Do whatever is easiest. Just avoiding veggie caps is the goal. Take care!
All the best in natural health,
Dennis
Will taking cellulase breakdown hypromellose? I only ask because there is only one medication I can take for a particular illness I have (there’s no alternative), and it contains hypromellose which causes diarrhoea for me. I was hoping there was a solution (I can’t remove the hypromellose because it’s inside the capsules I am taking. Ironically, the capsules are gelatin but the contents contain hypromellose, which is presumably mixed in with the active ingredients of the medicine! I’ve emailed the manufacturer to request they remove the hypromellose, but no response as of today.
Hi, Emma: Now that’s a bummer. Worse yet, cellulase is unlikely to hydrolyze hypromellose. Hypromellose is just not similar enough to actual cellulose. Nevertheless, some hope in the scientific literature might suggest otherwise: Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Activity of Chitosan/Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose Film-Forming Hydrosols Hydrolyzed by Cellulase. Researchers aren’t really interested in answering your question directly. Nevertheless, taking cellulase won’t do any harm, so it would be worthwhile for you to do an experiment on yourself to see whether the enzyme will help. You can also evaluate a good probiotic supplement for this purpose, since colon bacteria can digest some things that we don’t have the native capacity to hydrolyze. Just get one that provides at least 30-50 billion CFU per dose. If you really want to take this to another level, you can even explore the use of the #1 medical probiotic, VSL#3. It can be miraculous. (Just a bit pricey.)
Best wishes,
Dennis
You’re entitled to your opinion but I know that veggie caps are not harmful to me in any way in fact, I have never had any problem whatsoever taking herbal supplements in vegetarian capsules so the problems that you’re speaking of and the results that you have gained in your experience could be most likely from the substances that are inside the vegetarian capsules that you have taken. Since I have never had any problems with vegetarian capsules then I can honestly say that it’s a matter of opinion.
Good points, Jim. ‘Opinion’ in this case is actually the result of an N=1 experiment, where I’m the only data point. Others have had the same experience. Most folks, like you, probably don’t notice any difficulties. Also, I agree with you about the ‘other’ stuff in supplements. Some of the ‘other ingredients’ can be problematic, too.
Thanks for your input.
Cheers,
Dennis
The “my experience doesn’t show this so others are wrong” crowd shows up quite often in food allergy issues. So your comment is not surprising Jim. Though it seeks to invalidate the experience of people like myself that have actually traced their symptoms to veggie capsules and ended up at this article, which confirms my own findings.
Please keep in mind that you may have some body issue that I and others don’t have, like poor eyesight, excess weight or diabetes etc, as an example. Using your line of thinking, the rest of us could then say, since in our experience, this doesn’t exist, that those things are simply your opinion Jim.
Doesn’t that sound bizarre……..?
You recommend Botanic Choice.
Take a look at their B-complex please.
Surely something has updated.
Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, polyethylene glycol, magnesium stearate!
Sorry Charlie, not for me, thank you.
https://www.botanicchoice.com/Vitamins/B-Vitamins/Super-B-100-Complex-50-tablets.axd
So, where do I get a B-complex supplement in a Gelatin capsule with No additives?
No one wants to supply supplements in Gelatin w/o all the other crap.
Oregon’s Wild Harvest comes closest, any others?
God bless, Terry
Hi, Terry: Great comment and questions. Thanks. As for finding a B-complex in gel caps, it’s probably a no-go because these days only fat-soluble supplements are provided in gels anymore. Manufacturing a powdered supplement of mostly water-soluble ingredients, and inserting it into veggies caps, is still the cheapest choice for supplement companies. Ah, always a challenge navigating what’s good vs what we don’t need.
Cheers,
Dennis
So glad to have run across your post. I have always innately been aware that the capsules were a problem–it just makes sense that companies are not going to package their goods into anything that would affect their bottom line.
Thank you Dr. Dennis for confirming my suspicions!
Carolyn
Glad to be of help, Carolyn. Thanks for your comment.
Cheers,
Dennis
Hello Dr. Clark,
Never paid attention to capsule types until two days ago. I’ve suddenly found one slightly droopy eyelid. It has become normal as soon as I stopped taking the supplement. I then tried the supplement without the capsules, there has been no more droopy eyelid. Dry eyes yes, but better though.
I’ve Googled info on Hypromellose (derived from cellulose capsule)
Found symptoms such as droopy eyelids and dry eyes from this link
https://www.drugs.com/mtm/hypromellose-ophthalmic.html
While search for info on cellulose capsule of Grape Seed Exact, I am so glad that Google has led me to your very informative blog. Your experiment of taking supplements without the capsules has given me the confidence. I don’t take many supplements. But just wondering why don’t the manufacturers make solid tablets like Vitamin C tablets. Why do they add L-Leucine to Red Yeast Rice supplement? Thank You.
Hi, Alice: I’m so glad that you found my article. I’m even happier that it helped you find a solution to your droopy eyelid. I didn’t know hypromellose was used in opthalmic preparations. Thanks for that link. As for why ‘extra’ stuff is in supplements: generally brands are looking to make something stand out for its uniqueness or are using a more complicate mix to justify a higher price. Individual ingredients may have benefits. However, newly invented formulas almost never have research support.
All the best,
Dennis
Hi Dr. Clark, I have been trying to read all comments since my last visit and your replies whenever I can. What a wise idea of chewing on the Gel cap with Vitamin E stuff! Although there are no reactions from my body to the Gel Cap from Omega-3 finish oil, I have decided to chew on the pill and then discarded the shell. I can handle it since it’s just ONE pill a day. 🙂 No need to take the unnecessary stuff maybe harmful to my body. Thanks again for your blog!
I’m so glad you’ve started doing this. One bonus is avoiding gelatin that is laced with glyphosate (‘Roundup’). It’s occurrence derives from domestic animals raised on GMO crops (e.g., soybeans). Another bonus, at least for fish oil, is the easier detection of any oil that might have gone rancid. It’s immediately obvious – yech! Swallowing whole gel caps doesn’t tell you that.
Keep up the good stuff, Alice!
Cheers,
Dennis
Hello Dr. Clark,
Hope all is well. I am back to share another interesting finding since stopped taking the capsules (of Red Yeast Rice) and gel caps (of the Omega-3 Fish oil). My cholesterol test result is nearly optimal recently, LDL, HDL and Triglyceride are all within Normal ranges. LDL can be lowered a few points to its optimal level though. This was a pleasant surprise to me. I have not made changes dramatically in exercises or diet. I can only guess that the supplements are digested in my system much more efficiently than with those capsules and gel caps.
Thanks again for your cool and informative blog!
Hi, Alice: That’s all great news. Thanks for the input on your health. Keep it up!
Cheers,
Dennis
Very helpful article Dr. Clark, thank you for sharing it.
It was just yesterday that I made the connection and tried emptying the capsules into liquid to take them. Which would cause acid reflux and bloating that has gotten worse over time. Someone else mentioned symptoms similar to gluten and I am experiencing the same, being celiac.
My hope is that discarding the capsules will solve this problem.
Thanks again.
You’re welcome, Shane. I hope this new strategy helps you as much as it has helped me.
Cheers,
Dennis
Actually, if it weren’t for veggie caps, I would have to find tablets, which are not easy to find. I will not use gelatin supplements, as I am a vegetarian myself. If there were only gelatin caps, I would not take supplements at all. My doctor would have to inject any vitamins and minerals I am deficient in.
Hi, Crystal: I’m glad they are a solution for vegetarians. That’s why they came about. You’re right about tablets. In addition, I have difficulty swallowing them.
Cheers, Dennis
Thank you so much for this information. Now I’m freaking out. I’ve eaten a whole bunch of digestive enzymes today hoping it would HELP my digestion. Any idea how and how long it takes the body to dispose of the caps?
Hi, Daisie: It depends on ‘transit time’ – that euphemism for how long food takes from the time you swallow it until its waste products exit the other end. Ideally, this should be less than a day. Even when they hit your colon, your GI bacteria will start to degrade them.
Cheers,
Dennis
Hello Dr Clark,
Thanks for clarifying what I’ve long suspect about vegan capsule shells. As an ethical vegan, I buy only vegan supplements, however I open my vegan shell capsules and dump the stuff in water and glug it down quickly. I don’t take many supplements as I believe in getting all my vitamins nutrients from food sources, but I do take D3 and K2, and I also take a bilberry capsules as it has stopped my itchy eyes.
I’d like to ask if you know anything about bulking agents and how safe they are. The K2 capsules I take contain RICE MALTODEXTRIN as a bulking agent, and finding information on whether this additive should be avoided is difficult. Have you any thoughts on this?
Thanks,
Sam
Hi, Sam: I’m so glad you’re successfully weaving your way through the supplement labyrinth. I have the same suspicions as you do. In general, if you can avoid maltodextrin, then do. Unfortunately, I don’t have a general strategy that works for all supplements. At least smaller capsules (e.g., K2) don’t contain much.
When I do find supplements that are only the ingredients I want – i.e., no “other” – that’s what I use. Sometimes I find powders that aren’t encapsulated at all. It only works for items that have a daily dose in the tsp range (quarter tsp, on up). It’s not so practical for manufacturers to make K2, selenium, DHEA, etc., in bulk powder form. The dosages are just too small.
What a challenge, eh?
Cheers, Dennis
WOW! I have microscopic colitis which was being treated unsuccessfully with several trial prescriptions. The explosive diarrhea has continued for 2 years straight. The worse it got, the more intent I was at taking my many supplements day and night, as I knew I wasn’t efficiently absorbing my food. Then I had to do a 24 hour urine with a list of foods and meds to avoid. I thought…I’ll just cut out all my 10 daytime supplements, just to not goof up the test, and keep my 2 nighttime supplements. For the first time in these two years, I have had formed stools for 8 consecutive days. I figured it was one of the foods OR an ingredient in my supplements that was causing my ongoing terrible GI distress. In my search for THE devilish supplement ingredient(s)….I JUST found your article, and now I think I’ve found THE culprit! Thank you SO much, Dennis. This could truly be life-changing for me. God bless you and your work.
That’s fantaastic, VSB. Your experience parallels mine in some ways. And those of many others. Thanks for your input. Comments like yours make my day!
Cheers,
Dennis
Wow! Thank you so much for this post!
I did this crazy thing – I realized that when I get stressed, I eat.
I had a major stressor this month, and realized that anything that was “food” would probably calm me. So, being vegan, I bought veggie caps, and “ate” those. It has worked to calm me down, though right away, I wondered what the cellulose might do, all that fiber. At the same time, I wasn’t too worried.
I kind of forgot, as soon, in addition to the extra stress that had me buy the veggie caps in the first place, I started having problematic loose stool. It ended up getting so bad, just today I went to get the stool kit tests to see if it is something serious. I have never in my life experienced anything like this.
Then tonight, something said to look up the capsules.
Thank you so for this post.
I may forget to update this with results. I want to at the very least express my gratitude!!!
Many blessings your way!!! (and to all who have shared as well)
It lead me to your site, and I am wondering, hoping, if, in a few days of not taking the veggie caps, my symptoms will disappear.
Hi, DW:
I’m not at all surprised at your experience. By now you’re probably back to normal digestion if you’ve stopped taking the veggie caps. About your comment regarding ‘all that fiber’, keep in mind that veggie caps are NOT cellulose. They are made from cellulose as the starter material, which is chemically modified into hypromellose. You could get a lot of cellulose from just eating celery. No problem on the fiber limit. The limit on hypromellose, however, should be zero.
Cheers,
Dennis
Monsanto/Bayer is also the same company that owns Pfizer.
No surprise there. Thanks for your comment, Milly.
Cheers,
Dennis
I’ve noticed those veggie caps seem like plastic. Compared to the old school gelatin.
There’s more to be concerned about. Such as the purity of the base supplement containing heavy metals. I’ve yet to find a supplement company that openly and consistently test their products. They can call themselves whatever they want on the label, and tell me what allergens are not in the product. That’s both laughable And not the transparency I’m looking for.
This goes without saying I’m not interested in any of the typical excipients such as silicon dioxide, that helps keep the manufacturer machinery running smooth.
Overall there’s a long way to go on the vast number of supplements on the market today.
Hi, Austin:
I would hope everyone would be as aware of the ‘back room’ goings on with supplements as you are. It takes a lot to get nutritious chemicals into our bodies if not from whole foods. Excipients, fillers, capsules, and even dyes are part of the package. Skipping coloring agents is easier than avoiding all the rest. One more thing about ‘old school gelatin’ that might be of interest to you: since its typically from animal skin, it contains glyphosate from the crops fed to the animals. Nobody is going to put THAT on a label!
Cheers,
Dennis
Hey Dr. Clark! I want to thank you very much for all the information you shared on this site. I am 78 years old and although I have had heart attacks and a double bypass as well as lung cancer surgery (caught it early thankfully), I am in very good health for my age. Ever since the bypass (about 25 years ago), I have been reading lots of alternative medicine journals and have added quite a number of supplements to my regime over the years. I’m currently taking about 33 supplements each morning and evening. The vast majority (all but about 6) are v-caps. They worked good for many years except they were hard to swallow. Eventually, I started getting them down with food which worked well for about 15 years. One of the non-v-cap supplements was HCI with pepsin because it helped tremendously with digestion because of low stomach acid. For the past year, however, the HCI didn’t seem to work. All those supplements kept feeling stuck at the base of my esophagus, and I was constantly bloated, gaining weight, and had to take Pepcid frequently. I had already thought about breaking open the v-caps when I ran across this post which seemed to confirm my suspicions that the v-caps were causing the problem. So, 1 week ago, I decided to open all the v-caps. As everyone knows, they taste horrible. However, with the right amount of stevia, you can get them down. What I really wanted to tell you is that after just 1 day of taking them with water and stevia (morning and evening – I don’t eat lunch), the bloating disappeared, and I felt better than I have in about a year. I’ve already lost 3.4 pounds in the last week, and I don’t have any indigestion. It also makes it a lot easier when you go out to eat because you can take the vast majority of your supplements before leaving the house and only carry 5 or 6 with you. I also grind flaxseed and take it with water, and I can testify that the flaxseed tastes a lot better than the supplement concoction. Anyway, thank you for sharing. I really appreciate it.
Wow…nice feedback, Mike. I had similar difficulties, although not to the extent you did. I’m sooooo glad this little post got your attention and confirmed what you were beginning to suspect.
Keep up the good health!
Cheers,
Dennis
I just sent a message asking if other people had this bloating with the supplements I am taking ;then I started looking into taken them without the capsule and came across your veggie cap crap 🙂 and bingo the answer to my bloating , not yet the answer if the supplement will still be as effective but rather it be a less effective then slowly poisoning myself with the veggie cap crap , ha . So will be taking these supplements with no capsules , starting tomorrow.
Thank you!
Great, Hannah.
Now if we could just figure out how to avoid all the fillers and so-called “other ingredients” that come with so many supplements!
Cheers,
Dennis
Hi, I’m very grateful I came across this website as I believe this will ultimately help me with my digestive issues. Thank you!!! 😊
You’re welcome, Monica. That’s what I love to hear!
Cheers,
Dennis
Hello Dr. Clark,
I just noticed that the Oregon’s Wild Harvest supplements that I just purchased are now made with pullulan veggie caps instead of bovine gelatin. I’ve been purchasing from them because of the much easier digestibility of gelatin.
I tried researching the digestibility of pullulan caps specifically, but cannot find anything. It appears to be new and possibly not as bad as other veggie caps, but I don’t really understand the science. Are you able to shed any light?
Thank you.
That’s a great discovery, Dina. I’ve found it very difficult to find such products, even though I know they’re out there. As for my view of pullulan, the first thing I did was to look up its composition. It’s made by a type of fungus. You can see more details on this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pullulan. The important things to know about pullulan is that it’s made of ordinary glucose, and the connections between the glucose molecules are digestible by our native enzymes. It looks like good stuff to me!
Cheers,
Dennis
Thank you! I first heard about the dangers of veggie caps from Shane Ellison (www.thepeopleschemist.com), but I was looking for more detailed information, and I found it here. I have stopped using vegetarian capsules completely after I found they seemed to be giving me headaches, which isn’t a good sign for what other effects they may be having.
The process for making hydroxypropyl methylcellulose also reminds me of the way they make modal by taking wood or bamboo, breaking it down, and then making it into something like plastic that they can spin into thread. Then they can call it “safe and natural” because it comes from bamboo.
I understand that it’s indigestible, but the fact that it is also soluble is a concern. It is breaking up into molecules, which could potentially pass through the intestines into the bloodstream, right?
Thanks again.
Thanks for your input, Rick. I got to know of Shane many years ago when his sister (or brother, or cousin – I forget) in one of my classes told me about him. He’s got a lot of great information on his website. As far as hypromellose passing into the bloodstream, that’s a big unknown. Most of it will be untouched as it passes through the stomach and small intestines, where we absorb digested food into our bloodstream. Of course, a leaky gut could let more things through that shouldn’t go through. If the gut is healthy, the hypromellose mostly serves as fodder for colon bacteria. Bacterial blooms may cause problems – diarrhea and gas – or they may not. It depends of an individual’s microbiome composition. Too many unknowns! Glad you discovered the problems so you could avoid them.
Cheers,
Dennis