How could the overuse of antacids inhibit protein digestion?
Here is an excerpt from the website below. It does explain IN GREAT DETAIL the answer to your question. “One thing that can de-nature proteins, including enzymes, is a change in pH, and in the case of enzymes, this would cause them to cease functioning. While hydrochloric acid, itself, cannot break peptide bonds (Cunningham, 1989), the low pH in the stomach denatures proteins in food, thereby changing their shape and exposing their peptide bonds so that pepsin can break these bonds. Even left-over salivary amylase is denatured, ceases to work, and is digested (Campbell, 1987). While hydrochloric acid does not actually digest food, it does help by softening the “glue” between the cells of various foods, making those foods more vulnerable to digestion by pepsin. Hydrochloric acid also helps by killing bacteria that are swallowed with food (Campbell, 1987). The smell and/or taste of food triggers an initial burst of gastric juice (pepsin, HCl, etc.). Once food is in the stomach, its prese
