magnesium stearate = hydrogenated oil?

January 26, 2004

i thought this might be of interest to some folks here - someone posted to

the wellpeople list yesterday that he was told by Premier Research that

magnesium stearate is actually hydrogenated oil. i asked ron schmid about

this because i know he's researched this issue and formulates his own

*additive-free* line of supplements, plus he has some info re mag. stearate

and other additives on his website. he said it's true, although he's not

sure if ms is 100% HO, but it's close, according to him. he also said that

that mag. stearate can be up to 5% of a capsule. yikes! it's hard to find

supplements these days (other than ron's and thorne research - and maybe

standard process?) that don't have additives, and in particular - magnesium

stearate. a number of my supplements contain it, which sucks because i try

hard to avoid HOs.

relatedly, according to an article from " pharmaceutical technology " that ron

quotes on his website, stearates also drastically reduce absorbability:

" These additives have a number of effects, including decreased absorption.

In a study published in Pharmaceutical Technology, the percent dissolution

for capsules after 20 minutes in solution went from 90% without stearates to

25% with stearates. These substances clearly effect the dissolution and

rapid absorption of nutrients. "

this certainly makes whole food and additive-free supps much more

attractive!

Suze Fisher

Lapdog Design, Inc.

Web Design & Development

Weston A. Price Foundation Chapter Leader, Mid Coast Maine

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" The diet-heart idea (the idea that saturated fats and cholesterol cause

heart disease) is the greatest scientific deception of our times. " --

Mann, MD, former Professor of Medicine and Biochemistry at Vanderbilt

University, Tennessee; heart disease researcher.

The International Network of Cholesterol Skeptics

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