Sodium Alginate

(Please note that I am not a doctor, but this has been my personal experience with this product). I bought this for my LPR reflux, since many US products don't contain enough alginate. Some US chewable antacid products state they contain aginic acid, but if you try grinding them down and mixing them with water or saliva, many of them will not gel. And when you expose them to acid, many will not gel or foam creating the raft. So these are essentially useless for my LPR.Luckily, there is a 2011 medical study for GERD published at the US NIH (NIHMS452859) that found that 1000 mg sodium alginate, 426 mg sodium bicarbonate, and 650 mg calcium carbonate did reduce reflux after eating by creating the alginate gel/foam raft, keeping acid away from the esophagus.Well sodium bicarbonate is just baking soda, and calcium carbonate is found in a typical Tums-type antacid. So I have tried to replicate this formulation by converting to US teaspoon measurements.So right after I received the new 16 oz container of WillPowder sodium alginate, I measured the volume in cubic centimeters by using a ruler and applied the equation for cylinder volume and measured about 647.5 cc's. Since there are approximately 453.6 grams in 16 oz., there should be approximately 1.43 cc's of sodium alginate per gram. But this is a rough estimate. And since 1 cc is approximately .20 teaspoons, to get 1000 mg (1 gram) of sodium alginate I calculated that I would need around .29 teaspoons, which is slightly more than 1/4 teaspoon.So I mixed a slightly rounded 1/4 teaspoon of sodium alginate with just under 1/8 teaspoon of baking soda (1/8 teaspoon of baking soda is somewhere around 500-600 mg). I also used a mortar and pestle to crush one 750 mg chewable calcium carbonate antacid tablet into a powder (it is 100 mg more but I figure that should be okay). Then I mixed all of this together with a few ounces of water.The alginate will begin to gel, and I mix it occasionally for a few minutes, and then when it seems homogeneous, I spoon it into my mouth. It tastes pretty good. A small amount of gas was produced a few minutes later causing me to burp.So what happens to that gel once you swallow it and it hits your stomach acid? Well, you can see this effect by pouring the gel into a bowl and then pour an acid on it (like vinegar) to mimic stomach acid. You will see the small amount of baking soda react and fill the gel with CO2 air pockets, creating the all-important raft.I calculated that there is enough Sodium Alginate in this container for about 317 uses, and so it is the cheapest solution I could find for my LPR reflux in the US. Another benefit is that since it is not a chewable tablet, I'm not grinding down chemical compounds with my teeth. I'm not sure what the long term use of chewable antacids does to my teeth and gums, so a liquid formulation should avoid these issues. However, the long term use of antacids in general can have side-effects and also create nutrient deficiencies, so please consult with your doctor before doing so.

I've been using for almost a year now and NOT for cooking! Look up the history of this product. Japanese used it after WWII to counter the effects of our atomic bomb. Strongest known natural detox, primarily used for radiation and heavy metal poisoning. I've tried many detoxes on the market. ALL at least increased my abdominal pain and many increased my vomiting and some even led to my spitting up blood and it came out the other end, too! So far NO SIDE EFFECTSS!!! My fatigue has lessoned, more mentally alert, pain seems to have subsided, also.I fill my own empty capsules. O size and take 1 in the a.m. and again in the p.m.

I have been using this as a reflux treatment for 2 years - eliminates all symptoms. It doesn't dissolve in water. You have to use a blender.1 teaspoon of Sodium Alginate1 teaspoon of Calcium Carbonate1 cup of waterPut in blender at high speed for several minutes. I usually make 4 or 5 cups at a time (fill the blender). This will make a white goop. It will also take a lot of dish soap for the cleanup.Store in a Tupperware container. It doesn’t need refrigeration but I like it better when it is cold. It doesn’t have any flavor to speak of.Take 1 to 3 tablespoons whenever symptoms are felt. This will often eliminate any symptoms for several hours. Sometime I sometimes have to take it more often. If there are symptoms at night, you can also take it just before bed or during the night. One cup usually lasts me a full day and is equivalent to about 2 tums – but way more effective. I have been taking this remedy for more than two years and the only side effect I can report is that it may make one rather regular. In any case I feel that using this mixture is much more preferable to taking Prilosec or Zantec.

May or may not be harvested in the North Pacific....defeating the purpose of taking it.Wish they could tell me the source.

I decided to try this for advanced reflux with chronic throat clearing that is both painful and disruptive. I put it in large capsules and have tried up to 8 caps at a time with no noticeable difference. Sigh. So disappointed. So far the only thing that works is gaviscon Advanced i order from england. I have large bottles of it at work and at home. Plus a travel sized one.

I can't find a review of this product which has been made recently at all, and I saw a bunch of other bad reviews on his other products, so I figured I should contribute my experience.I've never worked with sodium alginate before, so I don't know if it is me or not, but even following other recipes (I've attempted 5 so far), and measuring out all of the weights (I even used two different scales, just in case), there is not "no discernible flavor"- there is a very Strong, omnipresent chemical flavor to this alginate, and it ruins virtually every dish I've tried to make so far.Not sure if they changed suppliers or extraction methods or what, but I would not recommend this to anyone.I will try ordering from a different supplier, and see whether or not it's just the quality of this one.