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Consumers have been ingesting nutrients in soft capsules for decades due to their easy swallowing and convenience. Fishy burps and aftertastes will no longer be an issue since there’s a solution now. The story of a perfect touch down.

Enteric capsules are designed to pass the stomach and release the active fill in the small intestine. It's like landing a space capsule: A deviation from the course must be avoided. The perfect landing area for enteric capsules: the small intestine; therefore enteric soft capsule gelatine  prevents the release of medication or nutrient before it reaches the small intestine – like a break parachute that opens in the right place at the right time.

A rocket launch after 200 years of development work – and a soft precision landing

Enteric capsules are meant for oral administration. They were originally developed to administer medicines that tasted badly or caused gastric discomfort. If patients could not consume a medicine without vomiting due to its horrible taste, the patient could not be treated. The first attempts to remedy this situation used substances that were not affected by stomach acid such as fats, waxes, and paraffin. This was only partially effective as part of the pills still dissolved. Little progress was made until the late 1800s when Keratin was introduced as a pill coating, although it was later determined that they weren’t able to fully withstand gastric digestion.

Why to bet on enteric gelatin capsules?

Basically, there are four reasons for using enteric capsules:

1. Protection

They protect pharmaceutical ingredients, from the acidic environment of the stomach (e.g. enzymes and certain antibiotics).

2. Prevention

They prevent gastric distress or nausea from a drug due to irritation (e.g. sodium salicylate).

3. Improving Efficiency

It makes sure that the delivered drugs or nutrients are optimally absorbed in their most concentrated form in the small intestine.

4. Delayed Release

They are able to provide a delayed-release ensuring the active fill reaches the desired target.

What are the benefits of enteric gelatin capsules?

Enteric capsules have great utility for things that either upset the stomach or must be digested in the intestines. Most enteric delivery systems are produced by applying an acid-insoluble coating to freshly produce soft capsules. This intensive two-step process adds time and costs to the operating expenditures of each enteric gelatin capsule. Additionally, this coating produces an opaque shell – which is less desired by consumers. With GELITA^® EC, capsules producers now have the ability to create enteric capsules using standard equipment in a one-step process – avoiding additional time and costs – while creating brilliantly clear capsules. In brief:

• They reduce additional time and processing steps associated with historic enteric processes by providing an enteric solution with one product and one process
• Enteric Gelatin Capsules promote consumer compliance e.g by eliminating fishy burps often associated with fish oils and can help reduce occurrence of upset stomach
• The active ingredient of these Enteric Capsules will be released target-oriented in the intestines

This is how enteric capsules work

Most enteric coatings work by presenting a coated surface that is stable at the highly acidic pH found in the stomach, but breaks down rapidly at a less acidic pH. The human stomach has a pH of 1.5 to 3.5 which is highly acid. It enables the stomach to breakdown food for proper digestion. After the stomach, the acidity decreases to an almost neutral level in the duodenum. Before, the pH increases in the small intestine to a slightly alkaline pH of 7.4. This means that enteric capsules pass the stomach intact and then dissolve some time – usually 0.5 to 2 hours–, after ingestion when they reach the alkaline environment of the small intestine.

From extreme conditions to a one-step production

GELITA offers a comprehensive portfolio of gelatins that provides a broad range of controlled fill release profiles in soft capsules. Besides variety of standard gelatins, there are GELITA^® RXL and GELITA^® RXL Advanced for improved capsule shelf-life and stability. These special gelatins provide reliable release and reduced cross-linking properties, even under extreme storage conditions.

The GELITA release profile portfolio is complemented by GELITA^® RXL R² for revolutionary fill release. The soft capsules produced with GELITA^® RXL R² offer faster release of the fill and offer the added advantage of the reduced cross-linking properties of the RXL technology which is especially desired for e.g. pain relievers. And, now – on the opposite end of the release profile spectrum, GELITA offers GELITA^® EC; a gelatin product for the one-step production of truly enteric capsules. Different solutions, one goal: the perfect touch down for any type of fill.