On a recent visit to the sports medicine doctor I asked him what he thought of the “glucosamine thing”. I was interested in whether he was for or against taking them as a supplement while training for a marathon. He was not completely convinced of their effectiveness, but answered with a definite “yes-take them”. Apparently, it seems to help older athletes (that would be me) with joint pain but I cannot find a definitive article stating this as fact. Many of the journals profess that it cannot hurt. I have always taken the pills during training since hearing about it years ago, but so many studies are inconclusive.
In doing my Google research today, I came across this Runners World video that gives great ideas for ways to improve joint health by eating certain foods. Many of these foods are part of a healthy diet anyway, but the I did learn some things here. Turmeric (other names :curcuma longa, Indian saffron) seems to have great medicinal value. It is also apparently a natural cancer fighting ingredient. This is worth seeing for anyone who is as confused as I am as to the effects of glucosamine. In the meantime as I recover, I plan to keep using this glucosamine thing.
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I’ve always had a weird relationship with glucosamine: I haven’t had a joint injury, so I am afraid to not take it, but I wonder about its effectiveness (those conflicting studies) and fret a little about the cost. I will heed the doctor’s advice and —yes, I will (continue to) take them.
I appreciate the reminder to sneak the wonder spices turmeric, ginger (and cinnamon) into our meals whenever possible.