Papain
Alternate names: Concentré de Protéase Végétale, Papaina, Papaïne, Papainum Crudum, Pepsine Végétale, Plant Protease Concentrate, Protease, Protéase, Vegetable Pepsin
Actions: Dermatologic, Immunomodulating, Wound healing
Background
Papain is an enzyme found in the white fluid (latex) that occurs in raw papaya fruit. It is a protease, meaning it breaks down proteins.
Papain contains substances that might help fight infection and heal wounds.
People use papain for dental cavities, shingles, parasite infections, jellyfish stings, wound healing, and many other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support these uses.
Don't confuse papain with papaya or American pawpaw. These are not the same. Also don't confuse papain with other proteolytic enzymes (proteases).
Papain contains substances that might help fight infection and heal wounds.
People use papain for dental cavities, shingles, parasite infections, jellyfish stings, wound healing, and many other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support these uses.
Don't confuse papain with papaya or American pawpaw. These are not the same. Also don't confuse papain with other proteolytic enzymes (proteases).
Safety Safety definitions
When taken by mouth: Papain is commonly consumed in foods. It is possibly safe when taken as medicine in doses up to 1200 mg daily for up to 9 weeks. But taking very large amounts of papain is possibly unsafe. Very large doses might cause severe throat and stomach damage.
When applied to the skin: A solution of papain is possibly safe when used for up to 20 minutes. But applying raw papain or raw papaya fruit to the skin is possibly unsafe. Skin contact with raw papain can cause irritation and skin blisters.
Breast-feeding: There isn't enough reliable information to know if papain is safe to use when breast-feeding. Stay on the safe side and stick to food amounts.
Allergy to fig or kiwi fruit: People who are allergic to fig and kiwi might also be allergic to papain.
When applied to the skin: A solution of papain is possibly safe when used for up to 20 minutes. But applying raw papain or raw papaya fruit to the skin is possibly unsafe. Skin contact with raw papain can cause irritation and skin blisters.
Special Precautions & Warnings:
Pregnancy: Taking papain by mouth during pregnancy is possibly unsafe. It might cause birth defects or miscarriage.Breast-feeding: There isn't enough reliable information to know if papain is safe to use when breast-feeding. Stay on the safe side and stick to food amounts.
Allergy to fig or kiwi fruit: People who are allergic to fig and kiwi might also be allergic to papain.
Effectiveness
Effective Effectiveness definitions
There is interest in using papain for a number of purposes, but there isn't enough reliable information to say whether it might be helpful.
Dosing & administration
Papain has most often been used by adults in combination with other ingredients at a dose of 1200 mg by mouth daily for up to 10 weeks. It's also been applied to the skin in a solution. Speak with a healthcare provider to find out what type of product and dose might be best for a specific condition.
Interactions with pharmaceuticals
Warfarin (Coumadin)
Interaction Rating=Moderate Be cautious with this combination.
Warfarin is used to slow blood clotting. Papain might increase the effects of warfarin and increase the chances of bruising and bleeding. Be sure to have your blood checked regularly. The dose of your warfarin might need to be changed.
Interactions with herbs & supplements
There are no known interactions with herbs and supplements.
Interactions with foods
There are no known interactions with foods.
Products
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Per capsule:
- Carica papaya (Papain) 235200 PU
- Ananas comosus (Bromelain) 217800 PU
- Aspergillus oryzae (Kōji mould) 5.7 mg equiv. amylase 750 DUAA
- Aspergillus oryzae (Kōji mould) 4.75 mg equiv. protease 3709 HUT
- Rhizopus oryzae (Microfungus) 9.4 mg equiv. lipase 525 LipU
- Lactobacillus acidophilus (MED 27 & MED 28) 5 billion CFU
- Lactobacillus rhamnosus (MED 26) 2.5 billion CFU
- Bifidobacterium bifidum (MED 11) 125 million CFU
- Bifidobacterium animalis ssp. lactis (MED 13) 1.125 billion CFU
Practitioner product
Per 10 g:
- Carica papaya (Papain) 250 mg
- Arthrospira platensis (Spirulina) 1 g
- Chlorella pyrenoidosa powder 333 mg
- Wheatgrass powder 333 mg
- Inulin (Dietary fibre) 800 mg
- Lactobacillus acidophilus 5 billion CFU
- Bifidobacterium bifidum 3 billion CFU
- Bifidobacterium lactis 5 billion CFU
- Bifidobacterium longum 1 billion CFU
- Cynara scolymus powder 500 mg
- Hordeum vulgare 200 mg
- Malus (Apple) 200 mg
- Brassica oleracea var. acephala (leaf & sprout) powder (Kale) 100 mg
- Ananas comosus (Pineapple) 240 mg
- Spinacia oleracea (Spinach) 67 mg
- Beta glucan 50 mg
- Resveratrol 10 mg
- Ananas comosus (Pineapple oil) 65 mg
- Linum usitatissimum (seed) (Flaxseed) 400 mg
- Oryza sativa (Rice bran) 500 mg
- Pea protein isolate 1 g
- R-alpha lipoic acid 67 mg
- Thiamine hydrochloride (Vitamin B1) 400 µg
- Niacinamide (Vitamin B3) 5.3 mg
- Pyridoxine hydrochloride (Vitamin B6) 567 µg
- Riboflavin (Vitamin B2) 434 µg
- Pantothenic acid (Vitamin B5) 1.7 mg
- Cyanocobalamin (Vitamin B12) 0.8 µg
- Ergocalciferol (Vitamin D) 3.8 µg
- Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) 333 mg
- d-alpha-Tocopheryl acid succinate 100 mg
- Ubidecarenone (Coenzyme Q10) 8 mg
- Copper gluconate 225 µg
- Potassium phosphate dibasic 104 mg
- Folic acid 67 µg
- Biotin 10 µg
- Silica - colloidal anhydrous 14 mg
- Magnesium citrate 42 mg
- Zinc amino acid chelate 10 mg
- Chromium picolinate 10 µg
- Calcium citrate 132 mg
- Manganese amino acid chelate 1.4 mg
- Selenomethionine 30 µg
- Beta-carotene carotenoids (Vitamin A) 1.7 mg
- Citrus bioflavonoids extract 500 mg
- Citric acid anhydrous 150 mg
- Rosmarinus officinalis powder 68 mg
- Taraxacum officinale ext. 33 mg
- Vaccinium myrtillus powder 200 mg
- Glycyrrhiza glabra powder 67 mg
- Crataegus monogyna ext. 29 mg
- Astragalus membranaceus ext. 67 mg
- Vitis vinifera ext. 67 mg
- Camellia sinensis ext. 67 mg
- Ganoderma lucidum powder 21 mg
- Lentinula edodes powder 21 mg
- Aloe barbadensis ext. 500 mg
- Zingiber officinale powder 67 mg
- Eleutherococcus senticosus ext. 1 g
- Centella asiatica ext. 67 mg
- Withania somnifera ext. 67 mg
- Silybum marianum ext. 67 mg
- Arctium lappa ext. 21 mg
- Rosa canina powder 168 mg
- Lycium barbarum 33 mg
- Beta vulgaris (root) powder (Beetroot) 167 mg
- Daucus carota powder (Carrot) 83 mg
- Lecithin 725 mg
- Laminaria digitara (Kelp) 8 mg
- Natural vanilla flavour
- Natural pineapple flavour
- Thaumatin
- Stevia rebaubiana
- Luo Han Guo (fruit) ext. (Monk fruit)
- Xanthan gum
- Brassica oleracea var. italica powder 150 mg
- Malpighia glabra ext. 267 mg
- Theobroma cacao powder 100 mg
120 g
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Per tablet:
- Carica papaya (Papain) 190 mg
- Retinyl acetate (Vitamin A) 3.36 mg equiv. vitamin A 9500 IU equiv. retinol equivalents 2850 μg
- Amylase enzyme 63.4 mg equiv. amylase 9754 DU
- Cholecalciferol 9.5 μg equiv. vitamin D3 380 IU
Practitioner product
Per capsule:
- Carica papaya (Papain) 50 mg
- Calcium phosphate 149.9 mg equiv. calcium 58 mg
- Zinc amino acid chelate 25 mg equiv. zinc 5 mg
- Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) 100 mg
- d-alpha-Tocopheryl acid succinate 41.3 mg equiv. vitamin E 50 IU
- Retinyl palmitate (Vitamin A) 278 μg equiv. retinol 150 μg RE
- Magnesium phosphate pentahydrate 96.8 mg equiv. magnesium 20 mg
- Manganese amino acid chelate 25 mg equiv. manganese 2.5 mg
- Pyridoxine hydrochloride (Vitamin B6) 50 mg equiv. pyridoxine 41.13 mg
- Silica - colloidal anhydrous 49.25 mg equiv. silicon 23 mg
- Ananas comosus (Bromelain) 80 mg
- Calcium fluoride (Calc fluor)
Practitioner product
Per 5 g (Cucumber Lime):
- Carica papaya (Papain) 40 mg
- Brassica oleracea var. italica powder 250 mg
- Arthrospira platensis (Spirulina) 100 mg
- Cordyceps sinensis 105 mg
- Lentinula edodes 100 mg
- Trametes versicolor 70 mg
- Astragalus membranaceus 100 mg
- Camellia sinensis 500 mg
- Grifola frondosa 125 mg
- Spinacia oleracea (Spinach) 175 mg
- Brassica oleracea var. acephala (leaf) powder (Kale) 175 mg
- Nasturtium officinale 160 mg
- Apium graveolens powder 110 mg
- Pleurotus eryngii 100 mg
- Lipase 750 LipU
- Protease 1000 DU
- Ananas comosus (Bromelain) 350 GDU
- L-glutamine 500 mg
- Bacillus coagulans 4 billion CFU
- Lactobacillus rhamnosus 750 million CFU
- Saccharomyces cerevisiae (boulardii) (SB) 500 million CFU
- Quercetin 100 mg
- Taraxacum officinale 100 mg
- Coriandrum sativum 80 mg
- Zingiber officinale 50 mg
- Rosmarinus officinalis 50 mg
- Origanum vulgare powder 50 mg
- Natural flavours
- Stevia rebaubiana ext.
- Eleutherococcus senticosus 100 mg
- Citric acid anhydrous
- Chlorella vulgaris powder 175 mg
150 g Cucumber Lime
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Per capsule:
- Carica papaya (Papain) 20 mg
- Curcuma longa ext. 23.08 mg
- Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) 40 mg
- Copper gluconate 1.79 mg equiv. copper 250 μg
- Quercetin dihydrate 100 mg
- Ananas comosus (Bromelain) 100 mg
- Citrus bioflavonoids extract 50 mg
- Rutin (Rutoside) 50 mg
- d-alpha-Tocopheryl acid succinate 20.66 mg equiv. vitamin E 25 IU
- R,S-alpha lipoic acid 20 mg
- Manganese amino acid chelate 5 mg equiv. manganese 500 μg
- Zinc amino acid chelate 10 mg equiv. zinc 2 mg
- Cyanocobalamin (Vitamin B12) 100 μg
- Folic acid 160 μg
- Pyridoxine hydrochloride (Vitamin B6) 15 mg equiv. pyridoxine 12.34 mg
- Riboflavin (Vitamin B2) 50 mg
Practitioner product
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Per 35 g (Chocolate Fudge):
- Carica papaya (Papain)
- Oryza sativa (Brown rice)
- Vicia faba (Fava bean protein)
- Pumpkin seed protein
- Cannabis sativa (seed)
- L-glutamine
- Acacia sp. (fibre)
- L-glycine
- L-valine
- L-threonine
- L-leucine
- L-arginine
- L-isoleucine
- Theobroma cacao (Cocoa powder) 3.24 g
- Natural flavours
- Malus (powder) (Apple)
- Siraitia grosvenorii (Monk fruit)
- Medium Chain Triglycerides (powder) (MCT)
- Xanthan gum
- Eleutherococcus senticosus
- Coffea canephora
- Camellia sinensis
- Magnesium citrate
- Zinc gluconate
- Ferrous fumarate
- Pink Himalayan crystal salt
- Laminaria digitara (Kelp)
- Ananas comosus (Bromelain)
- Vitamin D
- Cyanocobalamin (Vitamin B12)
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This monograph was last reviewed on 31/01/2024 11:00:00 and last updated on 17/04/2022 02:14:26. Monographs are reviewed and/or updated multiple times per month and at least once per year.
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Natural Medicines rates safety based on scientific evidence according to the following scale: Likely Safe, Possibly Safe, Possibly Unsafe, Likely Unsafe, Unsafe, and Insufficient Evidence to Rate. For more information about Natural Medicines’ Safety Rating System, click here.
The Natural Medicines Effectiveness Ratings are assigned for specific indications. A product might be rated "Possibly Effective" for one condition, but be rated "Likely Ineffective" for another condition, depending on the evidence. For more info click here.
