Editing Pharmaceutical glaze

'''Pharmaceutical glaze''' is an [[alcohol]] based solution of various types of food grade [[shellac]].<ref name="Handbook">{{cite book | last = Smolinske | first = Susan C. | title = Handbook of Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Excipients | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=FDisTRAhLRoC | publisher = CRC Press | page = 347 | year = 1992 | isbn = 084933585X }}</ref> When used in food and [[Confectionery|confections]], it is also known as '''confectioner's glaze''', '''resinous glaze''', '''pure food glaze''' and '''natural glaze'''.<ref name="Kosher">{{cite book | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=_-Yz02-CF6MC | title = Kosher Food Production | last = Blech | first = Zushe Yosef | page = 275 | quote = Many candies are polished with "confectioner's glaze." otherwise known as "resinous glaze." The base of this material is shellac, which is derived from the lac insect. Although most Kashrus organizations accept this material, some do not. | year = 2004 | publisher = Blackwell Publishing | isbn = 0813825709 }}</ref><ref name="StraightDope">{{cite web | last = Adams | first = Cecil | title = The Straight Dope: Is some candy coated with beetle juice? | url = http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/695/is-some-candy-coated-with-beetle-juice | publisher = Creative Loafing Media, Inc. | year = 1992 | accessdate = 2009-02-02 }}</ref> It is also known colloquially in the manufacturing world as '''[[beetle]] juice''' due to shellac's derivation from the [[lac insect]] ''Kerria lacca'' (which is not a beetle, but a [[scale insect]]).

Pharmaceutical glaze may contain denatured alcoholic solution of 20-51% shellac<ref name="Handbook" />, waxes and titanium dioxide as an opacifying agent.

Pharmaceutical glaze is used by the drug and nutritional supplement industry as a coating material for tablets and capsules. It serves to improve the product's appearance, extend [[shelf life]] and protect it from moisture, as well as provide a solid finishing [[film]] for pre-print coatings. It also serves to mask unpleasant odors and aid in the swallowing of the tablet.

The shellac coating is insoluble in stomach acid and may make the tablet difficult for the body to break down or assimilate. For this reason it can also be used as an ingredient in time-released, sustained or delayed action pills. The product is listed on the [[FDA]]'s inactive ingredient list and has been accepted as safe. It is generally regarded as an acceptable ingredient to a pharmaceutical-grade tablet, and is used in quality manufactured products in a [[Good_Manufacturing_Practice|GMP]] environment.

A competitive non-animal-based product is [[zein]], a corn protein.<ref name="Credible">{{cite journal | last = Klahorst | first = Suanne J. | title = Credible Edible Films | year = 1999 | month = September | journal = Food Product Design | url = http://www.foodproductdesign.com/articles/466/466_0999ap.html | accessdate = 2009-02-02 }}</ref>

== References ==
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[[Category: Pharmacology]]
[[Category:Food additives]]