Many glucosamine products sold on the shelves don’t give the consumer what they need. In the USA, these supplements are not regulated by the FDA, and the amount of effective ingredient cannot be verified. There is some conjecture over the most effective dose, and some supplements simply will not provide the benefit intended. A common question people ask is how much glucosamine do I need?
Firstly, you should look for a product that is combined with chondroitin. Chondroitin is another naturally occurring substance in the body and when used with glucosamine, is much more effective. It can be taken in a seperate pill, but any good joint supplement will have it combined. How much glucosamine do you need? well...
How much Glucosamine Do I Need?
Many products on the market have varying levels of glucosamine and chondroitin in them. Ideally, for around the first two months, you would want to be taking 1500mg glucosamine and 1200mg of chondroitin a day. Look for these values when choosing your product as any less may not give you the desired benefits and anymore will simply be excess. There is little evidence on whether a higher dose may have toxic effects.
Once a response is obtained you can lower this level to 1000mg of glucosamine and 800mg of chondroitin. It will take upwards of 6 weeks to feel the benefit of this supplementation. This will enable you to maintain the benefits given by the initial supplementation. Now you know how much glucosamine you need to take, start getting the benefits.
