Nutraceuticals and nootropics for anti-aging

Glucosamine OK for diabetics

People who have type-2 diabetes and who also have painful joints have been wondering whether they can safely use glucosamine supplements for joint repair. Animal studies had raised concerns that the supplements might increase blood glucose. A recent clinical study has now eliminated this concern — glucosamine, used in therapeutic amounts, does not raise glucose levels. It seems that in the animal studies the amounts of glucosamine used per kilogram body weight were about 150 to 22000 times the amount normally consumed by humans.

Link to discussion of the study:

Glucosamine and Diabetes

Link to abstract about the study:

The effect of glucosamine-chondroitin supplementation in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

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Many arguments used by anti-supplement and anti-drug crusaders are based on the same kind of irrelevant data that gave rise to the concerns mentioned above. Animal experiments in which ridiculously high dosages have been used are useful for determining which organs are most sensitive to a substance, but they have no value in determining the safety of therapeutic dosages. One should therefore greet with skepticism those people who rant about the dangers of substances, just as one should be skeptical when people hype the benefits of these substances.