A
Google search for "glucosamine chondroitin" produced
over 200,000 potential weblinks, a good proportion of which are retailers
wanting to sell supplements. Two excellent and reliable sources are the
Arthritis Foundation and the
National Institutes of Health - National Institute of Arthritis, Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS).
Following are three links that contained reasonable and evidence-based information:
To answer your question, the second link above is a study recently conducted in patients with
type 2 diabetes
taking glucosamine chondroitin. The endpoint measure was
HbA1c levels
after three months of therapy, and no change was seen between the glucosamine chondroitin group
and a placebo group. However, A1c is an average of
blood glucose
over three months and may not indicate day-to-day changes in blood glucose levels. Since glucosamine
is a glucose molecule and an amino acid linked together, some studies
have shown an increase in blood glucose levels with larger doses of glucosamine chondroitin.
A good recommendation
is simply to monitor blood glucose levels more frequently with the initiation of glucosamiine chondroitin to gauge how your own body responds to this added therapy (per the advice in the last link above).
slb
[ED: Also see
Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate, at the
American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons website.]
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