text: 29-Sep-2005 - Last updated on 19-Jul-2008 at 09:50 GMT
  Two long-awaited clinical trials on glucosamine have found the
  shellfish-derived substance to significantly reduce the pain of
  arthritic joints, and it may be better than a commonly used
  painkiller in Europe.
  The results, posted in abstract form on the website of an upcoming conference, confirm what many osteoarthritis sufferers already know: US consumers spent $800 million on the supplement during 2004, and in Japan retail sales reached $200 million, according to Euromonitor.
  "Combination glucosamine and chondroitin sulphate is effective in treating moderate to severe knee pain due to osteoarthritis,"​ says the authors' abstract.
  Daniel Clegg from the University of Utah will present the full study findings at the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) meeting​ in San Diego on 14 November.
  After 24 weeks, the superior efficacy of the glucosamine supplement on various pain and mobility indices of osteoarthritis was evident.
  Dr Herrero-Beaumont declined to comment further on the results to NutraIngredients.com ahead of the conference. However the abstract concludes: "Glucosamine sulphate…might be the preferred symptomatic medication in knee osteoarthritis."​
  In both trials there were no differences among groups in safety.
  Andrew Shao, in charge of scientific affairs at the US-based trade association the Council for Responsible Nutrition, noted that each trial can be considered "well-designed, well-conducted, gold-standard"​.
  The glucosamine and chondroitin sulphate used in GAIT were required to meet pharmaceutical standards as it was conducted under an Investigational New Drug application.
  Such high standards will be important if glucosamine makers are to attract new consumers that have been alerted to the risks of traditional treatments for arthritis by the makers of Cox-2 inhibitor drugs.
  Indeed, the new findings on glucosamine and chondroitin sulphate will prove timely as the withdrawal of Cox-2 inhibitor drugs last year continues to prompt interest in natural substances to relieve joint pain.
  Patricia Estepa, product manager at Bioiberica, the Spanish firm that supplied the chondroitin sulphate used in the GAIT trial, said: "All the results are not included in the abstracts but as preliminary findings these are great, especially for our product."​
  "I think the whole category will see growth following these studies, and particularly in the US. It is the first time that such a large trial has been done in this country - a big food supplement market - at this level,"​ she added.
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