Many people take glucosamine to help joints that have been affected by diabetes. Many people often want to know if taking glucosamine can make diabetes worse and increase blood glucose levels.
There haven’t been any scientific proof that shows a link between glucosamine and people with type II diabetes. There doesn’t seem to be a correlation between an increase in the blood sugar level been taking the supplement to treat arthritis pain.
There have been different studies done on glucosamine and they have all fallen all increase in blood glucose levels among the people who have type II diabetes who participated in the study.
Glucosamine and Type 2 Diabetes Study
A research study was conducted in 2003 at Wilford Hall Medical Center at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas by Dr. Daren Scroggie. The purpose of the study was to examine the use of glucosamine and how it affected glucose levels, especially in people who have diabetes. The results from the study stated that the use of glucosamine supplements does not significantly affect glucose levels of people who suffered from type II diabetes. This largely debunked an earlier theory that glucosamine affected glucose levels based on animals that is that had been done. These studies showed a slight increase in glucose levels for the animals that were treated with glucosamine.
An explanation to this result was given by Dr. Daren Scroggie as it related to the trial study. He stated that typically in the animal was given a dosage of 3,000 to 435,000 milligrams per day, while the corresponding dosage for human is only around 20 milligrams per kilogram of body weight for the person on a daily basis. This big difference showed that the effect of glucosamine on humans is negligible.
The results of this study were great news for people who took the glucosamine supplement and suffered from diabetes.
Glucosamine and Diabetes, Another View
There was always concern regarding the use of glucosamine to treat arthritis as many people believe that it’s caused an increase in blood sugar levels. The reason behind this is that glucosamine is said to be 10 times stronger than regular blood glucose in causing resistance to insulin. It can raise fasting blood sugar levels and worsen the body’s tolerance to glucose. These effects take place because a metabolic pathway that is found in our body called hexosamine is activated by the glucosamine. This particular pathway will cause a deterioration of cells that produce insulin inside the pancreas.
Researchers that have been studying this subject have found that the particular pathway allows proteins to be covered in sugar. When this occurs it stops the proteins from giving insulin the indicator to regulate the levels of glucose in the blood. Glucosamine can affect the emission of insulin in the body, even though it cannot be broken down into glucose.
People who take glucosamine to treat their arthritis and have diabetes should be extra cautious when taking this supplement. They should speak with their doctor before taking glucosamine and they should pool regular checks of their blood sugar levels.
There have been many research studies that have been done on glucosamine. The results are not conclusive and many have shown that only certain people will react to the product. There needs to be a more comprehensive study that is done to show the effects of glucosamine and people who suffer from diabetes.