Sore knees: Which is better Glucosamine or Chondroitin?
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Sore knees: Which is better Glucosamine or Chondroitin?
As you get older, your body will inevitably have various problems, especially the knee joint. Due to years of weight-bearing activities, the knee will gradually experience a series of erosion of articular cartilage, osteophyte formation, bone hyperplasia, and cartilage hardening. Biochemical and morphological changes, so many middle-aged and elderly people have knee pain problems.
This kind of knee pain is actually a manifestation of osteoarthritis, which is mainly caused by damage to articular cartilage, accompanied by pain and decreased mobility.
In recent years, a kind of drugs called glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate have become popular. Both of these drugs have protective effects on articular cartilage.
However, in reality, many friends know which of these two drugs is better? How to eat? Today the pharmacist will answer for you.
Features of Glucosamine
The damage of articular cartilage is a complex and long process, during which there are many harmful factors involved, such as the stimulation of inflammatory factors, the hydrolysis and destruction of articular cartilage matrix by various hydrolytic enzymes, and the production of superoxide free radicals in cartilage cells.
Glucosamine is a natural amino monosaccharide, which is mainly extracted from crabs and other shelled marine organisms. In simple terms, Glucosamine can correct and reverse the damage to articular cartilage caused by these harmful factors, and promote the synthesis of knee cartilage matrix and the growth of cartilage cells.
However, this effect of glucosamine has a more prominent shortcoming, that is, the effect is not accurate and the effect is slow. Many studies on the efficacy of glucosamine have not obtained more consistent results, and most of the research results show that glucosamine It takes more than 8 weeks to show a certain effect, and the effect is more stable if used for more than 1 year.
Characteristics of Chondroitin Sulfate
Chondroitin sulfate is an acidic mucopolysaccharide extracted from animal cartilage. It can promote cartilage regeneration, improve joint function, reduce joint pain, swelling and fluid accumulation, and prevent knee joint gaps from narrowing. This is equivalent to providing A layer of padding can effectively cushion the impact and friction caused by the movement of the knee joint.
Which is better, glucosamine or chondroitin?
The review article “Application of Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate in the Treatment of Osteoarthritis” pointed out: Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate are natural amino polysaccharide compounds, easily soluble in water, more than 90% The ingredients are easily absorbed by the intestinal mucosa.
The smaller molecular shape allows them to pass through the blood-synovial barrier, cover and disperse into the articular cartilage, and can be absorbed by cartilage cells. Both of these two drugs used alone or in combination have achieved good clinical and experimental results, and have little side effects.
Based on the opinions of other scholars, these two drugs are commonly used drugs for the treatment of osteoarthritis. Many studies have shown that the combination of the two drugs can have a complementary effect than the single use, and the effect is more significant. The speculated reason may be chondroitin sulfate It makes up for the shortcomings of inaccurate curative effect and slow onset of glucosamine, and both drugs are relatively safe and suitable for long-term use.
Because of this, in developed countries in Europe and America, these two ingredients are approved as non-prescription health products, and many manufacturers also combine these two ingredients to form a compound preparation. Therefore, it can be seen that these two drugs do not actually say which is better. They can work together to protect the knee.
Finally, because the effects of these two drugs are very mild, and the safety is very high, so for people with knee pain, it is best to take it for a long time, such as continuing to take at least 8 weeks or more than 1 year, of course, the course of medication It also requires regular follow-up visits to observe the efficacy of the drug and whether the side effects of the drug occur.
In addition, for middle-aged and elderly patients with knee pain, if they are diagnosed with knee arthritis, pain-based patients should first consider oral analgesics at regular intervals or when necessary. Acetaminophen is the first choice abroad, which has obvious pain relief effects, but long-term use Later, there were reports of liver and kidney damage.
Other commonly used drugs include diclofenac, ibuprofen, naproxen and coxib drugs, but there are many adverse reactions, especially gastrointestinal reactions that limit their long-term use.
(source:internet, reference only)
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