Embargoed for Use Before April 18, 2000
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New Study Suggests Glucosamine Sulfate May Promote Development of Insulin Resistance
Popular Dietary Supplement May be a Concern for Diabetics, Obese
SAN, DIEGO, CA. . . April 18, 2000. . . A research study presented today at the annual Experimental Biology scientific meetings cautioned that consumption of the popular dietary supplement glucosamine sulfate may actually increase the risk of developing insulin resistance and may worsen control of diabetes in patients with this disease. Glucosamine sulfate is widely used to relieve the pain of osteoarthritis and other chronic joint conditions.
"Somewhat to our surprise, we found that taking glucosamine sulfate supplements may promote insulin resistance. Our data, from a preliminary 15 subject study, suggest that taking glucosamine sulfate could decrease the metabolic actions of insulin, already a potential concern in obese patients or people with high risk factors such as high blood pressure, genetic predisposition to diabetes or heart disease. Our data also suggest that glucosamine sulfate may aggravate blood sugar control in diabetic patients. We recognize the limits of our study. More research, with a larger number of subjects and more rigorous assessment methods, is needed to replicate and confirm our findings. We are planning an additional clinical study investigating if the combination of another dietary supplement with glucosamine sulfate would offer all of the joint benefits without the risk of developing insulin resistance," said Anthony L. Almada, M.Sc., President and Chief Scientific Officer of IMAGINutrition(r).
"I have seen blood sugar levels rise in a few of my diabetic patients who are taking glucosamine sulfate. Diabetics who are taking glucosamine sulfate supplements should check with their physicians and look for a possible worsening of their blood sugar control," cautioned Chris Foley, MD, Director of Integrative Health for HealthEast, a major Twin Cities healthcare system in St. Paul, Minnesota.
"We funded this study in partnership with the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic simply out of scientific curiosity. A recent editorial in the British medical journal The Lancet suggested that glucosamine sulfate could produce insulin resistance, but before this study, no one had examined this important question. We used a minimally invasive, validated method to see if insulin resistance indeed manifests" added Mr. Almada.
The double blind, placebo-controlled randomized 12-week study involved 15 patients and was conducted by scientists at Los Angeles College of Chiropractic and MetaResponse Sciences in 1999. Since injections of glucosamine produce an "acute" form of type II diabetes in animals the scientists wondered if this would occur in humans taking glucosamine sulfate orally. Previous clinical studies have measured only blood glucose but not blood insulin, the hormone from the pancreas that is underproduced or "under-effective" in diabetics.
According to Nutrition Business Journal, retail sales of glucosamine sulfate in the U.S. are estimated to be between $230-300 million a year. Over 21 million Americans suffer from osteoarthritis, according to the National Institutes of Health. It is unknown how many diabetics take glucosamine sulfate. According to the American Diabetes Association, there are 15.7 million people (5.9% of the population) in the U.S. who have diabetes.
MetaResponse Sciences is a sister company to IMAGINutrition and collaborates with academic research institutions around the globe examining the safety and efficacy of dietary supplements, and medical and functional foods.
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