A friend of mine who is very much into homeopathic medicine and is very conscious of what she eats just got back from a health food/vitamin store and has been convinced the best way to absorb your vitamins is by inserting them as suppositories.
I have heard of this with pain pills, but I don’t know of anyone inserting their vitamins as a suppository on a regular basis.
She was told that this bypasses the stomach which can break down the vitamins and minerals. By inserting the vitamins or minerals you get more of the benefit.
I’m not sure if all pill coatings can dissolve in the environment of the large intestine when they are meant to be broken down by stomach acid.
For instance, I am pretty sure that most food/liquids leave the stomach as pH neutral. If that is the case, then there might be a problem with non-neutral solids and liquids entering the large intestine, either because acidity/basicity affects intestinal flora or because it would cause problems with yeast growth or intestinal tissue (e.g. mucosal lining).
If absorbing things through our asses was the best way to do things, we’d be eating that way rather than using our mouths. One way to look at it is that we humans and many other animals have made it just fine without rectally administered vitamins. It is of dubious value at best, and even if it were better, why not just take a little more of it by mouth and not have to shove things in our butts?
I feel bad for people who take animal pak. the rectum has very thin membranes that can absorb liquid and dissolve pills and gel tabs, but I don’t know whether it will work with large grain pills ouch!!!
By any chance is there a man in her life who insists that semen is loaded with vitamins and minerals?
In all seriousness, it probably works quite well for some vits/minerals, but not well or at all for others. I’d be concerned that some may irritate the tissues down there in undigested form, but I’m just speculating.
The benefit of a suppository versus the same drug in oral form is that, by virtue of bypassing the stomach and liver in the digestive process, there are virtually no side effects or liver toxicity issues. At least that’s what one doc told me.
This really was a serious question. I worried for my friend who takes iron and folic acid daily. I am gettting that it isn’t huge difference. I guess that is good as in I can tell her to stop.
Thank you for those of you who responded. I had no idea what to say.
[quote]PonceDeLeon wrote:
The benefit of a suppository versus the same drug in oral form is that, by virtue of bypassing the stomach and liver in the digestive process, there are virtually no side effects or liver toxicity issues. At least that’s what one doc told me.[/quote]
SEEE!!! that is why she is sticking multi vitamins up her butt!!!
