Glucosamine

Information about Glucosamine

Glucosamine is a popular nutritional supplement and natural component of cartilage that is frequently combined with chondroitin sulfate and used for osteoarthritis and nonspecific joint pain.

File:Glucosamine sulfate.svg

Glucosamine sulfate

Liver safety of Glucosamine

Glucosamine has been implicated in isolated case reports in causing clinically apparent liver injury, but the role of glucosamine as opposed to other herbal components or contaminants has not been shown, and liver injury due to glucosamine or chondroitin must be very rare if it occurs at all.

Mechanism of action of Glucosamine

Glucosamine (gloo kose' a meen) is a natural component of cartilage that is a widely used as an over-the-counter nutritional supplement purported to decrease the pain and cartilage loss of osteoarthritis. Glucosamine is commonly taken in combination with chondroitin (kon droe' i tin), which is a glycosaminoglycan that is also present in cartilage. Glucosamine is an amino sugar and a prominent molecule in the biochemical pathways of synthesis of glycosylated proteins and lipids.

Crystals-of-N-acetyl-glucosamine

It is also a major component of keratin sulfate and hyaluronic acid which are present in articular cartilage and synovial fluid. Both glucosamine and chondroitin are reduced in osteoarthritis. Glucosamine is commercially available alone and in combination with chondroitin and widely used for osteoarthritis and arthritic pain.

Evidence for Glucosamine

Controlled trials of glucosamine with and without chondroitin have yielded conflicting results. In the largest US study of glucosamine for early osteoarthritis, glucosamine alone and the combination of glucosamine and chondroitin were no more beneficial than placebo in alleviating joint pain or preventing progression of cartilage damage.

N-Acetylglucosamine

Dosage and administration for Glucosamine

Glucosamine is typically taken in doses of 500 mg three times daily and chondroitin sulfate in doses of 200 to 400 mg three times daily.

Side effects of Glucosamine

Side effects are uncommon and mild and may include abdominal discomfort, nausea, fatigue and headache; but in placebo controlled trials, side effects during glucosamine therapy were no more frequent than with receipt of placebo.

Herbal and dietary supplements

• Aloe Vera, Ashwagandha, Astragalus, Bilberry, Black Cohosh, Butterbur, Cat's Claw, Cascara, Chaparral, Comfrey, Crofelemer, Echinacea, Ephedra, Fenugreek, Flavocoxid, Garcinia cambogia, Germander, Ginkgo, Ginseng, Greater Celandine, Green Tea, Hoodia, Hops, Horse Chestnut, Hyssop, Kava Kava, Kratom, Lavender, Maca, Margosa Oil, Melatonin, Milk Thistle, Noni, Passionflower, Pennyroyal Oil, Red Yeast Rice, Resveratrol, Saw Palmetto, Senna, Skullcap, Spirulina, St. John's Wort, Turmeric, Usnic Acid, Valerian, Yohimbine

Chinese and Other Asian Herbal Medicines

• Ba Jiao Lian, Bol Gol Zhee, Chi R Yun, Jin Bu Huan, Ma Huang, Sho Saiko To and Dai Saiko To, Shou Wu Pian

Multi-Ingredient Nutritional Supplements

• Herbalife, Hydroxycut, Move Free, OxyELITE Pro, SLIMQUICK

See also Nutritional supplements

Comprehensive list of common dietary supplements with detailed product information including brand name, how it is supplied, net contents, product ID etc, sorted alphabetically.

List of dietary supplements sorted alphabetically

A – B – C – D – E – F – G – H – I – J – K – L – M – N – O – P – Q – R – S – T – U – V – W – X – Y – Z – W – 0-9

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Dietary supplements

A Acai Aloe Vera Anabolic Steroids Astragalus Vitamin A B Bilberry Bitter Orange Black Cohosh Botanical Dietary Supplements Butterbur Vitamin B12 Vitamin B6 C Calcium Carnitine Cartilage Cat's Claw Chamomile Chasteberry Chondroitin Chromium Cinnamon Coenzyme Q10 Colloidal Silver Cranberry Vitamin C

D Dandelion Dietary Supplements Vitamin D E Echinacea Ephedra Essiac/Flor-Essence European Elder Evening Primrose Oil Vitamin E F Fenugreek Feverfew Fish Oil Flaxseed Folate G Garlic Ginger Ginkgo Ginseng Glucosamine Goldenseal Grape Seed Extract Green Tea

H Hawthorn Herbal Dietary Supplements Hoodia Horse Chestnut I Iodine Iron K Kava Vitamin K L Lavender Licorice Root M Magnesium Melatonin Milk Thistle Mistletoe Multivitamin/mineral Supplements N Noni O Omega-3 Fatty Acids

P PC-SPES Peppermint Oil R Red Clover S Sage SAMe (S-Adenosyl-L-Methionine) Saw Palmetto Selenium Soy St. John's Wort T Tea Thunder God Vine Turmeric V Valerian Vitamin A Vitamin B12 Vitamin B6 Vitamin C Vitamin D Vitamin E Vitamin K Y Yohimbe Z Zinc

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