Category: Excipients

Approximately 37% of marketed medications use maize (corn) starch as an excipient. These excipients are inactive substances sourced from corn, playing crucial roles in the formulation of oral medications like tablets, capsules, and syrups.

Over 80% of all oral drug dosage forms are tablets, and the vast majority of these contain cellulose or its derivatives. Cellulose in medicine is a versatile, plant-based polymer that acts primarily as an inert, non-active ingredient known as an excipient, playing crucial roles in formulation stability, drug release, and delivery.

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and other global regulatory bodies, microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) is generally recognized as safe (GRAS) when used in normal quantities within food and supplements. This plant-derived ingredient is one of the most common pharmaceutical excipients, yet its presence on supplement labels often sparks consumer questions about safety and purpose.

Sodium starch glycolate (SSG), a common pharmaceutical excipient, is typically derived from starch, which can be sourced from several plants, including corn, potato, or wheat. This manufacturing flexibility allows for a range of raw material options depending on desired properties and cost-effectiveness.

Sodium starch glycolate (SSG) was the first superdisintegrant introduced to the pharmaceutical industry, significantly outperforming traditional disintegrants. The primary function of sodium starch is to cause the rapid disintegration of tablets and capsules upon contact with water, ensuring efficient drug release.

In many dry powder inhaler (DPI) formulations, lactose can make up over 99% of the powder mixture, acting as an essential excipient. The indispensable role of lactose in DPI is to serve as a carrier, facilitating the transport and dispersion of the tiny, potent drug particles.

According to research, mannitol is used as a preservative, diluent, and sweetener in many pharmaceutical products. While it isn't an antimicrobial agent designed to kill microbes, its stabilizing properties perform a preservative-like function, particularly for moisture-sensitive ingredients.

Silicon dioxide, also known as silica, is a naturally occurring compound found in many foods and is ubiquitous in nature. Thorne uses silicon dioxide in small amounts as a food-grade excipient to ensure manufacturing consistency and product stability.

Lactose is found in over 60% of all oral solid dose medicines, including tablets, capsules, and dry powder inhalers. This prevalence often raises concerns, particularly for individuals with lactose intolerance or milk allergies, who question why so many medications contain lactose, an ingredient known to cause digestive issues in some people. The answer lies in lactose's unique properties, which make it an ideal inactive ingredient, or excipient, in drug manufacturing.

While it is derived from plant cellulose, a substance commonly associated with fibrous plant material, microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) is practically insoluble in water. This fundamental property is crucial for its various roles across different industries, especially in pharmaceuticals and food science, where it is leveraged as a binder, filler, and stabilizer.