This article discusses Enteric coating and contrasts it with non-Enteric coated capsules in light of the digestive process. It describes the benefits and efficacy of an Enteric coating against non-Enteric coated capsule intakes. The article concludes by providing the reader with an understanding of the absorption rate of each coating type by illustrating the digestive systems' significance in the process.

What is Enteric coating?

The Enteric coating method protects drugs and substances from the highly acidic pH environment in the stomach to increase their efficacy.

To understand the importance of an Enteric coating, one needs to know how a capsule is absorbed. Enteric coating protects substances from degrading within the stomach before reaching the small intestine. The small intestine absorbs nutrients and energy the body needs for energy and sustenance. 

The digestive process

When one consumes something, the substance goes through the digestive system. The purpose of the digestive system is to convert food to energy and nutrients. It comprises ten organs that work in unison to support the process. Food is first broken down by chewing and the activation of salivary glands. Enzymes in the saliva break down carbohydrates. The softened form of food and saliva is called a bolus. The bolus is passed further into the digestive system through the oesophagus.

The oesophagus moves the bolus into the stomach through the oesophageal sphincter. A sphincter is a muscle that forms a valve to open and close bodily passages. The bolus lies in the stomach for between 30 minutes to seven hours, tending towards the latter. The stomach breaks the bolus down further using muscle movement and gastric acid emitted from its lining in this period. Gastric acid comprises several substances - including hydrochloric acid, lipase, pepsin, and the intrinsic factor. The substance produced from the bolus is called Chyme. Chyme enters the small intestine through a second sphincter on the lower half of the stomach, the pyloric sphincter.

The small intestine comprises three components - the duodenum, the jejunum, and the ileum, connected in order. The duodenum connects the stomach to the small intestine. It produces enzymes that break down food using enzymes that it secretes. The jejunum absorbs nutrients previously broken down by the duodenum. The ileum absorbs specific nutrients and excess nutrients that the jejunum could not. Villi, structures that line the ileum, transfer the broken down components into the bloodstream. Fats convert to fatty acids and glycerol, protein breaks down into amino acids, and carbohydrates break down into glucose. The bloodstream is the conduit that transports these nutrients to tissues and organs that require a consistent inflow to function. Excess nutrients expel through the large intestine.

Organs involved in the digestive process. Source: LadyofHats, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

 

How coating affects absorption efficacy

At several stages within the digestive system, the body breaks down food to convert it into nutrients. The nutrient conversion process occurs in the small intestine within the ileum. It is one of the final stages of digestion. Before that, a regular capsule possesses a far greater likelihood of being broken down by requisite stages within the process, primarily in the stomach. They are exposed to the stomach and tend to degrade within it due to its acidic environment. Orally-consumed substances lie within the organ for approximately six hours. During this time, regular non-coated tablets tend to decay before the nutrients they contain can be used due to the harsh conditions. A remnant of the content passes to the small intestine. The enteric coating improves the probability of nutrient absorption into the bloodstream by protecting the contents from the violent context it is subject to within the body. The capsule can reach the small intestine intact, where the contents can be broken down and absorbed into the bloodstream.