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About the Quality of
Glucosamine in Dietary Supplements
Glucosamine is a
widely used ingredient that occurs naturally in the body of
warm-blooded animals, and forms an important building block of
joint cartilage. Glucosamine may help build tissue that holds
water providing cartilage thickness and giving it a cushioning
effect. Dozens of scientific studies with animals and humans
have clearly demonstrated that dietary supplementation of
glucosamine in combination with chondroitin, another building
block of cartilage, benefits connective tissues. The best-known
clinical study is the 4-year one known as the Glucosamine/chondroitin
Arthritis Intervention Trial (GAIT), conducted at 16 sites
across the United States. This double-blind, placebo-controlled
study was sponsored by the government funded National Institute
of Health (NIH), and was published in 2005 in the New England
Journal of Medicine. This study, which enrolled nearly 1,600
patients, showed that when Glucosamine and Chondroitin were used
in combination, they resulted in relief of knee pain in nearly
79% of patients with moderate to severe osteoarthritis;
significantly more than either the placebo control group, or
patients that were treated with the common NSAID drug Celecoxib
(Celebrex).
 
Quality
Nearly all glucosamine originates in China and nearly all is
produced from shellfish. The quality of glucosamine varies and
is sometimes not of the expected purity. Several consumer
studies have brought to light that glucosamine products sold in
stores contain between 0% and 115% of the glucosamine claimed on
the labels. This is not to say that manufacturers add less than
the desired amount on purpose, but rather that the glucosamine
used is of dubious quality. Another problem with commonly used
glucosamine is that people who are shellfish intolerant may
respond adversely to shellfish-derived glucosamine, even though
the chemical process should eliminate almost any proteins
present in the source material.
Glucosamine Sulfate of
Glucosamine HCL?
Pure glucosamine molecules are chemically unstable, and
manufacturers of glucosamine products must therefore purchase a
stabilized form of this molecule, which is done by converting it
into a salt. Typical forms of glucosamine salts are [glucosamine.HCl],
better known as glucosamine hydrochloride, and
[glucosamine.SO4.2KCl], or glucosamine sulfate. There is a fair
amount of controversy about which salt form is easiest
assimilated by the body, although in reality both salts, in the
pure form, deliver equally effective amounts of the desired
glucosamine to joint cartilage. The explanation is
straightforward; in the acidic environment of the stomach, the
stable glucosamine salt molecule is quickly ionized into a
positively charged glucosamine ion and a negatively charged
chloride or sulfate ion. Only the pure glucosamine relates to
the observed benefits relative to osteoarthritis.
There is another important difference between the two forms,
however, and that is the weight of the glucosamine molecule. The
SO4.2KCl portion of the sulfate salt form is much heavier than
the HCl portion of the hydrochloride form. Another way of
looking at this is, that one molecule of glucosamine chloride
contains approximately 80% pure glucosamine, while one molecule
of glucosamine sulfate contains only about 60%. Therefore,
glucosamine hydrochloride yields considerably more pure
glucosamine, and it takes therefore less of the hydrochloride
salt form to derive at the same absolute label claim of
glucosamine than when using the sulfate salt form, so that the
tablets can be smaller. A word of caution when comparing
concentrations of glucosamine present in products from different
manufacturers; it is important to notice whether the label claim
is presented as pure glucosamine or as the glucosamine salt. For
example, a label claim of 400 mg glucosamine (as glucosamine
sulfate) is very different from a claim of 400 mg glucosamine
sulfate, which would represent only 240 mg glucosamine.
RegenasureŽ Vegetarian
Glucosamine
Cargill, an international provider of food and agricultural
products, is the sole producer of a patented, vegetarian form of
glucosamine, i.e., a non-shellfish, non-animal derived form of
this popular ingredient. This form of glucosamine is marketed
under the brand name RegenasureŽ glucosamine. The stabilized
chemical form of this molecule is the hydrochloride salt, as
this form yields the most glucosamine per unit weight.
Nevertheless a major disadvantage of this vegetarian glucosamine
is that it costs about two to three times as much as the more
popular animal-derived forms of glucosamine. RegenasureŽ
glucosamine is pharmaceutical grade and therefore of the highest
possible purity, and is produced by means of a unique and
patented fermentation process. Not only is RegenasureŽ
glucosamine of high quality, it also is obtained from corn and
therefore not subject to the shortcomings of animal-derived
glucosamine. This important fact is a major benefit to people
and pets allergic to shellfish.
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