What is PepZin GI aka Zinc Carnosine?
Some of you may have read my experiment with PepZin GI. But what is it?
PepZin GI is Zinc Carnosine. A combination of Zinc and L-Carnosine. This was developed in Japan in the 1980s and started use in Japan in the 1990s. In Europe it is patented by a company named Lonza and in the USA sold under the different brands with the marketing name PepZin GI.
Zinc Carnosine was primarily developed to heal stomach ulcers and it works. People with leaky gut are suspected with having stomach ulcers. Heal the ulcers, heal the leaky gut right? Cure the leaky guy and stop the polluting of blood. With clean blood, the kidneys and the liver do not need to be overloaded and form stones. It will put an end to kidney cleansing and liver cleansing. No more stones in the future. That’s the theory. It has worked for some.
Will try it on myself and my brother.
Introduction
As a scientist, I am always astonished by the advancements medical researchers are making in the development of life-saving drugs. As a physician, I clearly understand the public’s growing interest in natural remedies that enable the body to heal itself. And as a teacher, I can’t help but tell people about a treatment that combines a natural approach to healing and is grounded in actual scientific research. Zinc-Carnosine is just such a breakthrough.
Having had a long-standing interest in the treatment of ulcers, as I pointed out in the book’s Introduction, I was made aware of Zinc-Carnosine several years ago. Because of my position as a visiting professor at the University of Hong Kong’s medical school, I was fortunate enough to come across a number of reports on Zinc-Carnosine. The scientific literature seemed very credible. As it turns out, Zinc-Carnosine has had remarkable success in Japan as a treatment for peptic ulcer disease, but the supplement is hardly known in North America and Europe. Hopefully, this book will change that.
Zinc-Carnosine deserves consideration as a first-line ulcer treatment in this part of the world. Besides ulcers, Zinc-Carnosine is valuable for treating gastritis and dyspepsia. The supplement represents a natural healing approach to stomach ailments. Instead of obstructing an action of the stomach—blocking acid production, neutralizing hydrochloric acid—Zinc-Carnosine strengthens the stomach’s mucosal defenses. The supplement harnesses the stomach’s natural ability to fight disease, battle infection, and heal itself.
This chapter explains what Zinc-Carnosine is and examines whether it is safe. I look at how the supplement heals ulcers and relieves ulcer pain. In the second half of this chapter, I examine the science behind Zinc-Carnosine. I will cite many studies that show how Zinc-Carnosine achieves its healing power. However, let’s start at the beginning, and look at zinc and L-carnosine—the two components of Zinc-Carnosine— separately.
HOW ZINC CARNOSINE HEALS ULCERS
Zinc-Carnosine relieves stomach pain, heals ulcers, and perhaps prevents them. How? The supplement works by strengthening the stomach mucosa, sticking to the stomach wall and acting as a buffer to gastric acid, serving as an antioxidant, controlling the inflammatory response to stomach injury, and inhibiting the growth of H. pylori bacteria. You’ll learn more about each of these important actions directly below, and will discover the technical details of Zinc-Carnosine’s mode of action later in the chapter.
Strengthens the Stomach Mucosa
The lining of the stomach is protected from its own caustic gastric juice by a thin gel-like layer of mucus. When this mucus layer erodes, the stomach lining is exposed, and you can get an ulcer. Evidence suggests that Zinc-Carnosine works primarily by strengthening the mucosal barrier between the stomach lining and the harsh gastric juices of the stomach. The supplement appears to adhere to the stomach wall to provide protection to all areas of the stomach. These studies give a picture of Zinc-Carnosine’s protective effect on the stomach lining:
In an early study conducted at the Yokohama Red Cross Hospital in 1992, twenty-five patients whose ulcers were confirmed by endoscopy were given 75 mg Zinc-Carnosine tablets twice daily (one after breakfast and one before bed) for eight weeks. Drugs such as H2 blockers and proton pump inhibitors that might affect the results of the study were prohibited. The “disappearance rate†of epigastric pain symptoms in the patients was 53.3 percent after meals, 76.9 percent fasting, and 90.9 percent at night. Of the twenty-five subjects who had a final assessment by endoscopy after the eight weeks, 65 percent were healed of their gastric ulcers. This study is interesting because the ulcers were healed without suppressing the production of acid. Zinc-Carnosine was able to provide a genuine protective effect to the stomach.
In a double-blind study of three groups taking 50-mg, 75-mg, or 100-mg Zinc-Carnosine tablets twice daily for eight weeks, the success rates of the study as obtained by endoscopy were as follows: 50.8 percent for 100-mg group, 58.6 percent for 150-mg group, and 53.6 percent for 200-mg group.
These studies show very clearly that Zinc-Carnosine has a protective effect on the stomach, and that the supplement’s healing action is not based solely on its role as a buffer of stomach acid.
Adheres to the Stomach Wall
Like bismuth and to a lesser degree sucralfate, Zinc-Carnosine coats the stomach and acts as a barrier between ulcers and hydrochloric acid. In this way, it protects ulcer sores from irritation by acid, relieves pain, and permits the sores to heal. In a 1992 study called “The gastric mucosal adhesiveness of Z-103 (Zinc-Carnosine) in rats with chronic ulcer,†M. Seiki et al. concluded, “(Zinc-Carnosine) shows a long-term adhesive and permeable action on the gastric mucosa in acetic acid ulcer rats, and it has a comparable high affinity at the ulcerous site.†The scientists attributed Zinc-Carnosine’s adhesiveness to its zinc content. They also noted that the strength and duration of adhesiveness was dose-dependent, which indicates that Zinc-Carnosine has a genuine adhesive effect in the stomach.
Acts as an Antioxidant
More so than most other organs, the stomach is subject to oxidative stress from alcohol, swallowed tobacco smoke or juice, and other harmful substances. Zinc-Carnosine acts as an antioxidant to prevent these substances from eroding the stomach lining. I describe experiments involving Zinc-Carnosine and its antioxidant properties in the second half of this chapter.
Tempers the Inflammatory Process
Inflammation is a natural response of the immune system to injury. Nevertheless, too much inflammation in the stomach can cause Âgastritis and painful ulcers. In experiments, the supplement Zinc-Carnosine retarded the TNF-alpha secretion of interleukin-8, a Âmolecule involved in the inflammatory process. The supplement therefore appears to modulate the immune-system response and keep inflammation in check.
Inhibits H. Pylori
H. pylori bacteria are responsible for seventy-five percent of stomach ulcers worldwide. Zinc-Carnosine inhibits the growth of the bacteria, probably by strengthening the stomach mucosa and making it less susceptible to a bacterial infection.