Glucosamine & Diabetes – News Update

Source: Jean Carper’s Update
January – March 2004

I’ve heard that taking glucosamine-chondroitin raises blood sugar and could be dangerous to diabetics. Is this true?

That fear, once widespread in the medical profession, has been put to rest by a recent double-blind study done by rheumatologists at the Wilford Hall Medical Center, Lackland Air Force Base. Patients with type 2 diabetes took a daily dose of 1500 mg of glucosamine hydrochloride and 1200 mg of chondroitin sulfate for 90 days. Their blood was tested regularly for signs of changes in glucose metabolism due to the glucosamine-chondroitin. But none was found. Not a single patient reported any adverse effects or needed any change in their medication or diabetes management while taking the glucosamine-chondroitin. The conclusion: There is nothing to worry about.

The researchers wrote: “This study demonstrates that oral glucosamine supplementation does not result in clinically significant alterations in glucose metabolism in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.”