Glucosamine For Joints Which Supplement For Joints Should I Choose
Knee, shoulder or hip pain is a very common problem that increases with age. Supplements for joints may be helpful, as long as the type and concentration of active ingredients are well chosen. The main substances in joint preparations are glucosamine and chondroitin. Why does glucosamine work for joints? What other ingredients should a good joint pain supplement contain?
Ranking The Best Glucosamine Supplements Of 2022
Glucosamine plays an important role in preserving joint health. Glucosamine reduces joint inflammation and pain from arthritis, and may help rebuild damaged cartilage and slow the progressive loss of joint space that occurs in the disease.
Many people find that glucosamine is helpful for other kinds of joint pain as well, such as sports injuries.
Need a glucosamine supplement to relieve your joint pain? Dont worry, our research team has you covered.
Here are the best glucosamine supplements available right now.
Our advisory panel and our research team rank the best health products and supplements based on performance, label accuracy, and the efficacy of the ingredients in the products.
Research
September 2, 2022Glucosamine supplements considered: 25
MoveWell supports and protects your joints by maintaining cartilage, lubricating joints, and increase glutathione production to fight inflammation.
It accomplishes this through multiple clinically backed ingredients, including 600mg of chondroitin, 600mg of MSM, 1500mg of glucosamine, 100mg of AprèsFlex® Boswellia, 100mg of curcumin and 100mg of hyaluronic acid per serving.
MoveWell is free of inflammatory agents, including gluten, soy, dairy, and sugar. It is also manufactured in a GMP-certified facility in the USA.
For the absolute best joint support formula, MoveWell glucosamine is the best out there.
Do Glucosamine And Chondroitin Supplements Actually Work For Arthritis
- By Robert H. Shmerling, MD, Senior Faculty Editor, Harvard Health Publishing
When it comes to health supplements, glucosamine and chondroitin are among the most popular. Worldwide, annual spending on these supplements is predicted to reach $3.5 billion by 2025. So youd think they must be highly effective.
And yet, thats not so clear.
Glucosamine and chondroitin, taken individually or in combination, are touted not only as relievers of joint pain but also as treatments to prevent joint disease. Yet a number of past studies have come to mixed conclusions some small studies, most looking at osteoarthritis of the knee, found that people felt modestly better taking glucosamine and/or chondroitin, but at least as many have found no benefit.
For example:
- A 2018 review of previous research found that treating knee or hip osteoarthritis with glucosamine and chondroitin led to small improvements on a pain scale, but it wasnt clear that the pain relief was actually meaningful.
- A 2022 analysis of eight studies that included nearly 4,000 people with knee osteoarthritis found no convincing evidence that glucosamine and chondroitin provided major benefit.
- The case for these supplements protecting joint health or preventing arthritis from worsening is similarly weak.
Recommended Reading: How Can I Relieve Arthritis Pain
Zenesis Labs Glucosamine Sulfate Chondroitin Msm
The capsules include bovine gelatin, so if that would conflict with any dietary concerns, take note. Adding a free e-book with information about joint pain recovery is a nice addition to this product .
This glucosamine and chondroitin product is unusually high methylsulfonylmethane, which has links to reduced knee pain.
Common Ingredients In Arthritis Pain Supplements
The default ingredient list of many arthritis pain supplements includes glucosamine, chondroitin, and MSM. However, manufacturers are not restricted to these ingredients. Here is a list of potential ingredients which should be clearly displayed on product packaging.
GlucosamineGlucosamine is a natural substance produced by the human body. It is usually found in joint fluids, bone marrow, and shellfish. It helps with the repair of cartilage damaged by inflammation. It can raise blood sugar levels in diabetics but is generally considered safe. There is no established therapeutic dose.
ChondroitinChondroitin is similar on a molecular level to glucosamine and is also found naturally in human joint tissue. Several reputable studies link the use of chondroitin with significant relief from osteoarthritis pain. It has some blood-thinning properties, so users taking blood-thinning medications or certain cancer drugs should caution.
MSMMSM is naturally found in green plants, but it is also produced in the human body. It is often touted as a miracle supplement that can help with a wide variety of medical conditions. The primary function of MSM in arthritis pain supplements is to deliver beneficial sulfur to damaged tissues.
TurmericTurmeric is a spice with a number of claimed health benefits. It is commonly found in prepared mustards and Indian food. As a supplement, turmeric is considered to have anti-inflammatory properties.
Read Also: Best Treatment For Lower Back Arthritis
Read Also: How Do You Know If You Have Arthritis
What Does It Do
The glucosamine in your body helps keep up the health of your cartilage the rubbery tissue that cushions bones at your joints. But as you get older, your levels of this compound begin to drop, which leads to the gradual breakdown of the joint.
Theres some evidence that glucosamine sulfate supplements help counteract this effect, although experts arent sure how.
Some people have also used glucosamine to try to treat rheumatoid arthritis and other conditions, such as inflammatory bowel disease, asthma, allergies, chronic venous insufficiency, sports injuries, temporomandibular joint problems , and long-term low back pain. So far, though, theres not much scientific evidence that it works for those problems.
How Much Glucosamine Is In Your Pills
Most glucosamine supplements are sold in the UK as a food supplement and NOT a medicine as such, they are checked for food safety to ensure they wont do you any harm, but theyre not checked for quality or quantity of the active ingredient. Because glucosamine isnt a herbal product, it also doesnt qualify for registration under the THR scheme, where supplement manufacturers can have their products verified independently and carry a THR mark to show that they have been certified and checked.
So we tested nine glucosamine supplement brands readily available in the UK, to see whether they contained the amount of glucosamine claimed on the bottle. Dr Cristina Legido-Quigley and her team at Kings College London’s Institute of Pharmaceutical Science undertook that analysis, and their tests revealed some surprising discrepancies.
Cristinas results showed that the pills didnt always contain the amount of glucosamine that was claimed on the packets.
Six of the brands did have 90% or more of the glucosamine that they said they did.
But two brands contained less than 75% of the amount advertised on the bottles which means that a pill claiming to contain 1000mg of glucosamine actually contained less than 750mg!
And price was no guarantee of quality either: we found that a brand that would set you back close to £300 a year contained similar amounts of glucosamine as one that would only cost £9 a year.
Read Also: What Foods Cause Inflammation Arthritis
What Can I Do To Relieve Aching Joints
- Exercise – a great way to strengthen the muscles around your joints and in turn reduce joint pain
- Eat a healthier diet it has been said that joint pain such as arthritis can be eased with a healthy diet packed with vitamins for joint health like omega-3, vitamin D and C. If you are looking to lose weight, this can also really help ease pressure and pain on your joints
- Use pain relief gel Anti-inflammatory gels such as Flexiseq are specially formulated to ease joint pain and reduce stiffness
- Use anti-inflammatory cream – applied topically to skin, these creams can help to relieve joint pain
- Try supports – If you experience joint pain when exercising, you can use straps or supports to ease pain. Find out more about looking after your joints when you exercise here
- Take joint health supplements supplements such as glucosamine and chondroitin are said to help ease joint stiffness and pain
- Try over the counter pain remedies Ibuprofen, including flarin can help to relieve swelling around the joints, as well as easing stiffness and reduce your pain
- Lose weight – did you know that every pound of excess weight exerts around 4 pounds of extra pressure on your knees? If you would like to know more about how to begin losing weight and perhaps alleviate your knee joint pain, read our healthy weight loss guide
Q2 What Causes Joint Pain
Joint pain can be triggered in a variety of ways. Being overweight or eating an improper diet might deprive the body of its nutrients to maintain healthy joints. Individuals with unhealthy inflammation or hormonal imbalances also may be more susceptible to joint discomfort than others. Furthermore, joint discomfort can be caused by overuse or misuse of the body when it moves in an incorrect manner.
Read Also: How To Reduce Rheumatoid Arthritis Pain
Before Taking This Medicine
You should not use this product if you are allergic to glucosamine.
Ask a doctor, pharmacist, or other healthcare provider if it is safe for you to use this product if you have:
-
if you take a blood thinner .
It is not known whether glucosamine will harm an unborn baby. Do not use this product without medical advice if you are pregnant.
Glucosamine may pass into breast milk and may harm a nursing baby. Do not use this product without medical advice if you are breast-feeding a baby.
Do not give any herbal/health supplement to a child without medical advice.
Which Form Of Glucosamine Is Most Effective And Easiest To Administer
There are three forms of glucosamine available today. Injection, solid and liquid. One of the best ways to take glucosamine from a chemical perspective would be to daily inject glucosamine into your joints. There no commercially available products on the market today that are in the injectable form. However, drinking a high quality liquid would confer essentially the same benefits. Due to absorption issues and potential problems with less effective forms of glucosamine, pills or tablets are not recommended.
In humans, aside from the absorption reasons, liquid is a great alternative to pills. Simply drink directly from the bottle or mix with your favorite beverage. Most glucosamine formulas that are not glycerin based will be soluble in water, a soft drink or fruit juice. In pets, liquid is by far the #1 way to administer glucosamine. Simply pour it over your pets food. No need for biting and scratching while you try to cram a pill down your pets throat.
Also Check: What Is The Normal Dose Of Methotrexate For Rheumatoid Arthritis
Q How Much Glucosamine Do I Need
A. Arthritis is a very common problem among the Americans. According to the statistics, around 22.7% of the American adults are diagnosed with some forms of arthritis, such as gout, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and others..
A Landmark Study Of Glucosamine And Chondroitin
A 2016 study of glucosamine and chondroitin enrolled 164 patients with knee pain due to osteoarthritis and gave half of them a combination of glucosamine and chondroitin the other half received an identical placebo pill. The study was stopped early for an unusual reason: those taking the supplement actually reported worse symptoms than those taking a placebo. This raises the possibility that taking glucosamine and chondroitin might make your joints feel worse than doing nothing.
Did this study or subsequent research spell the end of people taking glucosamine, chondroitin, or both? Not at all! While the evidence of benefit is certainly not compelling, some studies have found that these supplements provide modest benefit, and people who feel it is helping them may not care so much about individual studies anyway. Even if a treatment is not effective on average, there may be folks who, for whatever reason, get real relief from it. Finally, people are taking glucosamine and/or chondroitin for a number of reasons and conditions other than osteoarthritis of the hip or knee, so these studies may not apply to them.
Don’t Miss: Can Arthritis Be In Your Muscles
Holland & Barrett Glucosamine For Pets 60 Caplets
Our furry companions sometimes need some extra support for their bones, joints and cartilage.
Thats why we have developed this glucosamine complex for pets here at Holland & Barrett, containing glucosamine, chondroitin and MSM.
These quality-assured coated caplets give your pet the same high-quality support that you demand in supplements you take yourself.
Key benefits
What our customers think
Bolliboo Try this, great results 5/5 stars
Great product m. Made a massive difference to my 15 yr old puppy. Now playing and jumping around like a spring lamb.
Hurley01 FAST RESULTS 5/5 stars
So, my dog had a bit of a limp with her front arm, we werent sure what it was.
However, we wanted to put her into joint supplements as some point anyway, So we thought we would try these.
I gave my dog these in the morning and come the afternoon her limp had almost gone! I could not believe it, So I will definitely be keeping her on these and would definitely recommend them!
Previous Studies On Glucosamine With Chondroitin Show Promise For Knees
Based on research published in May 2015 in Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases and a study published in April 2016 in Aging Clinical and Experimental Research, using glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin together have shown promise for knee osteoarthritis. Dr. Erickson coauthored an article in the Journal of Hand Surgery about the evidence for chondroitin and glucosamine together as a therapy, and found that the combination did offer some improvement on pain in hips and knees due to OA.
Read Also: Which Joints Are Affected By Psoriatic Arthritis
What Are Glucosamine And Chondroitin
Glucosamine and chondroitin are structural components of cartilage, the tissue that cushions the joints. Both are produced naturally in the body. They are also available as dietary supplements. Researchers have studied the effects of these supplements, individually or in combination, on osteoarthritis, a common type of arthritis that destroys cartilage in the joints.
More information
Cartilage is the connective tissue that cushions the ends of bones within the joints. In osteoarthritis, the surface layer of cartilage between the bones of a joint wears down. This allows the bones to rub together, which can cause pain and swelling and make it difficult to move the joint. The knees, hips, spine, and hands are the parts of the body most likely to be affected by osteoarthritis.
For more information about osteoarthritis, visit the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Web site at www.niams.nih.gov. For more information on complementary health approaches for osteoarthritis, see the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health fact sheet Osteoarthritis and Complementary Health Approaches.
What Are The Benefits Of Glucosamine And Chondroitin
These are two separate ingredients: glucosamine, which is derived from shellfish and may slightly delay the progression of osteoarthritis and relieve pain, and chondroitin, a chemical found primarily in joint cartilage.
Some research indicates that this supplement may help to reduce pain and bone degradation caused by osteoarthritis. A study published in Drugs & Aging in 2007 concluded, there is compelling evidence that glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin sulfate may interfere with the progression of . It seems that chondroitin is more closely linked with reducing joint swelling. Glucosamine helps with pain and interferes with osteoarthritis progression.
Also Check: What Do You Do For Arthritis In Your Back
Joint Health Supplements Safety Side Effects And Drug Interactions:
In addition the results of its expert testing, ConsumerLab uses only high-quality, evidence based, information sources. These sources include peer-reviewed studies and information from agencies such as the FDA and USDA, and the National Academy of Medicine. On evolving topics, studies from pre-print journals may be sourced. All of our content is reviewed by medical doctors and doctoral-level experts in pharmacology, toxicology, and chemistry. We continually update and medically review our information to keep our content trustworthy, accurate, and reliable. The following sources are referenced in this article:
What Should Medicine For A Sore Knee Contain
Knees are the joints that are most often damaged and cause pain. Alongside them, there are shoulders and hips. Medicines for knee joints, as well as for all painful joints, contain not only glucosamine but also many other substances that build up cartilage, are part of the synovial fluid, reduce inflammation and help to rebuild damaged joints. A drug for a sore knee may contain a single substance in high doses, such as glucosamine, chondroitin or hyaluronic acid, or provide a combination of different ingredients that together form the effective knee joint medicines.
The substances that appear most frequently in medicines recommended for a painful knee are, except glucosamine:
Don’t Miss: What Does Arthritis Pain Feel Like
Who Shouldnt Buy Horbach Glucosamine Chondroitin With Turmeric & Msm
- Anyone who doesnt need such a high glucosamine dose in a single serving.
- People who would rather have Vitamin D instead of Vitamin C alongside their glucosamine.
With 60 servings per bottle, each capsule comes in at eight cents each. That kind of value is undeniable compared to the rest of the field when looking strictly at glucosamine dose. If you are on the market for a dose this high, it would be pretty hard to argue against this option.
Effectiveness Of Glucosamine And Chondroitin Sulfate For Osteoarthritis
Conventional medicine does not yet have a proven treatment to stop or slow the progression of osteoarthritis.
The nutritional supplements glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate have emerged as a treatment alternative for some patients suffering from osteoarthritis pain.
See Osteoarthritis Complete Treatment Guide
Perhaps the most important aspect of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate supplements is that they are thought to help slow or prevent the degeneration of joint cartilage, the underlying cause of osteoarthritis pain. Glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate dietary supplements may also help alleviate existing joint pain. Presently, it is thought that unlike many medications available to treat arthritis pain and inflammation, glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate supplements have very few side effects.
However, glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate nutritional supplements do not offer the desired pain relief for all osteoarthritis patients. At the time of this article, the benefits and risks of taking glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate have not been definitively proven, and long term studies are needed to better understand their effects.
Also Check: Does Arthritis Cause Weight Loss