Glucosamine and Chondroitin? Any experiences or recommendations?
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I´m sorry but they are all wrong. First both Glucosamine and Chondroitin have only been evaluated for a condition called osteoarthritis (OA) Do you have this?
Second, you should not be asking for experiences; recommendations should only come from evidence based medicine. According to most well designed studies neither is better than placebo for OA outcomes.
I´m a Rheumatologist and I don´t recommend it to my patients.
There used to be a widely held belief that, as we age, our joints simply wear out. The inevitable and unhappy ending of that scenario is that most people spend their golden years feeling or fighting the pain and being physically restricted by the crippling effects of osteoarthritis.
Now, thankfully, we know better, and that grim tale just isn't true.
What is true is that osteoarthritis is a condition in which the body no longer produces enough proteoglycans and collagen, two of the three essential ingredients necessary to give cartilage its resilience and ability to act as a shock absorber. And very often at the same time, certain enzymes are gnawing away at cartilage, contributing to the overall decline of the function of the joint.
The conventional treatment for this pandemic and debilitating condition has been nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen. They've certainly served their purpose by providing some relief from the pain. But the downside of these drugs is their many unpleasant side effects and the fact that they only respond to symptoms -- not the cause of the problem.
But there is good news these days. Combining glucosamine and chondroitin are now known to halt, reverse, or even cure osteoarthritis.
Here's how it works, healthy cartilage needs three things to stay
healthy:
1) water for both lubrication and for carrying the needed nutrients
to the cartilage.
2) proteoglycans to contain the water
3) collagen to build up the cartilage matrix
As mentioned earlier, osteoarthritis occurs when the body quits
making enough proteoglycans and collagen. But if you take chondroitin, it serves as a wrangler, attracting and keeping water in the "pen" with the proteoglycans. It also has the ability to;
1) act as a shock absorber
2) protect cartilage by stopping the enzymes from "chewing" on it.
3) stimulate production of proteoglycans.
4) help create glycosaminoglycans (GAGs), which are proteins that bind the water in the cartilage.
5) work synergistically with glucosamine to protect the old cartilage from premature breakdown while encouraging the synthesis of new cartilage.
Glucosamine is the other half of this amazing team. Made up of sugar and amino acids, this busy substances gives structure to cartilage as well as to bones, skin, nails, hair, and other body parts; acts as a building block for the water within cartilage; stimulates the cells that produce GAGs; assists with the production of collagen; normalizes metabolism; and boosts the production of other critical elements within the cartilage mix.
All this adds up to one vital result: Glucosamine helps the body repair damaged or eroded cartilage and therefore, according to a study reported in Clinical Therapeutics and Current Medical Research, "it helps reduce pain and restore joint function in people with osteoarthritis."
Studies conducted in the US and worldwide conclude that chondroitin and glucosamine work simultaneously to brew up new cartilage while warding off those cartilage-eating enzymes.
The bottom line is that if you have osteoarthritis, you will most likely experience good or excellent results in rebuilding damaged cartilage by taking this combination of supplements.
The other great news about chondroitin and glucosamine is that taking them produces no side effects. In fact, we already produce them within our bodies to a limited extent. So, unlike NSAID's, these nontoxic substances settle nicely into their jobs without creating problems for the rest of our system.
I recommend the glucosamine from Neways... http://www.ineways.com/shana
Glucosamine is basically one of a group of complex carbohydrates which must be attached to every single cell in the human body (about 600 trillion in all).
Yes, it is outstanding, but imagine what the whole collection would do. I work with the research and development company who pioneered the science of Glyconutrition, which is truly worth a serious look. There are already 350,000 scientific papers written on the subject, a whole edition of "Breakthrough in Health" recently being devoted to it.
It worked for the wifething and me.
Good luck.
I have used Glucosamine and Chondroitin for over 5 years. Without it, the osteo-arthritis makes using stairs nearly impossible. It takes a while to "kick in" (see below), and it needs to be taken consistently over the long term.
To quote WholeHealthMD:
glucosamine: What Is It?
Glucosamine, a sugar produced in the body and found in small amounts in foods, plays an important role in maintaining Cartilage, the gel-like material that cushions joints. When taken as a dietary supplement, glucosamine may help to relieve the pain, stiffness, and swelling of osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint disorder that affects 12% of the population, in which cartilage has worn down. Rheumatoid arthritis sufferers report improvements with glucosamine supplements as well, as do individuals with other types of joint injuries. Some 70 countries around the world sanction glucosamine as a treatment for individuals with mild to moderately severe osteoarthritis.
While there is no readily available source of glucosamine in foods--the shells of crabs, shrimp and oysters contain it but aren't typically consumed--several supplement forms have become widely available. These include glucosamine sulfate, glucosamine hydrochloride and N-acetyl-glucosamine (NAG). Glucosamine sulfate is the form best absorbed by the body and the one most commonly used to treat osteoarthritis. Interestingly, for years veterinarians have treated arthritis in certain animals with glucosamine hydrochloride.
Specifically, glucosamine may help to:
· Relieve osteoarthritis-related pain, stiffness and swelling. The millions of Americans who suffer from osteoarthritis have cartilage that has dried out and gradually broken down over time, cracking and flaking off. When joints are deprived of this cushioning, painful stiffness and inflammation can develop. Glucosamine helps to prevent these symptoms by protecting and reinforcing cartilage. Studies indicate that some arthritis sufferers experience improved range of motion after taking glucosamine. Others report increased overall mobility. And several studies suggest that glucosamine may be as effective in easing arthritic pain and inflammation--and not nearly as irritating to the stomach--as the NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) typically recommended for osteoarthritis (1). These studies are forcing doctors to reassess the use of acetaminophen as the first-line drug therapy for all patients with knee OA. Furthermore, the documented efficacy of glucosamine for pain relief and function improvement in patients with knee OA, with an effect size that is comparable with that of NSAIDs, requires us to reassess the use of glucosamine as a potential first-line agent at least for patients with knee OA who have mild-to-moderate pain (2).
· Slow and possibly halt osteoarthritis-related damage to joints. Glucosamine appears to protect and strengthen the cartilage around joints, particularly in the knees, hips, spine, and hands. In so doing, it may help to prevent further joint damage. And while it can do little to actually restore cartilage that has completely worn away--or reverse joint damage that has already occurred-- glucosamine appears to slow the development of mild to moderately severe osteoarthritis. A study that followed 414 postmenopausal women for three years and found that supplementation with glucosamine sulfate prevented the structural changes typical of knee osteoarthritis when compared with Placebo (3). Recently, another study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine found that the pain, and loss of functional mobility associated with osteoarthritis lessened 20-25% with a daily dose of 1500 mg of glucosamine sulfate (4).
Arthritis 500 mg glucosamine sulfate 3 times a day
chondroitin: What Is It?
A natural component of the Cartilage that cushions joints, chondroitin sulfate is a compound that appears to block the enzymes that can destroy crucial cartilage tissue. It is also believed to promote water retention and elasticity in joint cartilage. For these reasons chondroitin has become a popular dietary supplement for the treatment of osteoarthritis. Some studies indicate that it is as effective as aspirin and other NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) at relieving arthritis pains--and at considerably less risk of causing stomach irritation and other gastric upset.
Health Benefits
Preliminary findings indicate that chondroitin may increase joint mobility and slow cartilage loss. However, claims that chondroitin can actually help to rebuild cartilage remain largely unproved. Researchers hypothesize that chondroitin encourages water retention and elasticity in cartilage, and inhibits enzymes that break down cartilage.
With chondroitin use, joint function appears to improve and pain to diminish in people with knee and hip osteoarthritis. So far there is no firm evidence that the same effect would necessarily occur in other joints, such as fingers, thumbs, ankles, or the spine.
Specifically, chondroitin may help to:
# Relieve osteoarthritis pain. A recent analysis of seven clinical trials (all randomized and Placebo-controlled) indicates that supplementing with chondroitin can markedly (by 50% or so) reduce osteoarthritis symptoms. However, design flaws in some of the studies may mean that this estimate is on the high side, according to a 2001 report in the journal Best Practice & Research.
In an ongoing two-year Swiss study of 300 patients with knee arthritis, side effects from chondroitin were minimal, which may be one of its primary advantages over common NSAID drugs used to treat arthritis pain.
Dosage Information
Special Tips:
--Chondroitin is often sold in combination formulas for arthritis, most often with the dietary supplement glucosamine sulfate. Other anti-arthritis ingredients may be included as well, such as MSM, certain vitamins, the anti-inflammatory Enzyme bromelain, boswellia (a tree Extract), Sea cucumber, zinc, manganese, and horsetail.
Arthritis 400-600 mg chondroitin sulfate 3 times a day
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