1st Arthritis Resource, Especially Osteoarthritis

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My personal opinion is that Knees Ease can help prevent osteoarthritis. Below, I will describe to you some studies that lead me to this conclusion, which, I must stress, is my own personal opinion only. The answer to this question involves a lot of problems in matters of law. Whether it does or not, claiming that it does would be an invitation to a host of legal problems. Therefore, I will tell you about some interesting studies, and you'll have to make up your own mind about the answer to the question, and whether or not my conclusions are reasonable. Now, let us proceed.

The first two studies below mention the use of glucosamine, as the sulfate. I believe the primary reason that the sulfate form was used is that in the early European studies, the primary producer of glucosamine sold only the sulfate form, so that is what some researchers got used to. In our product, Knees Ease, we use the glucosamine in the hydrochloride form, rather than the sulfate form, because it (the hydrochloride) contains much more glucosamine than does the sulfate. When you calculate the amount of glucosamine in each, you will find that the hydrochloride contains about 83% glucosamine, while the sulfate form contains only about 62.5% glucosamine when in the sodium form and only about 59% when in the potassium form. If you further consider the fact that your food (including glucosamine products) finds itself in a sea of hydrochloric acid when it reaches your stomach, it becomes clear that the form of the glucosamine in the bottle is immaterial - it becomes the hydrochloride as soon as it enters your stomach. For those who would claim that you need the sulfur, I would point out that there is no RDA recommendation for the intake of sulfur, nor is there any known deficiency of sulfur. The only way a sulfur deficiency could occur would be if there were a severe deficiency of proteins which bear the sulfur-containing amino acids (cysteine and methionine). Hence, it is clear that what is said below for glucosamine sulfate would also apply to glucosamine hydrochloride.

1. The first is a study by Reginster et al. entitled "Long-term effects of glucosamine sulfate on osteoarthritis progression: a randomised, placebo-controlled clinical trial." In this study, 212 patients suffering from osteoarthritis (OA) in the knee were divided into two groups of 106 patients each. One group was given glucosamine sulfate and the other group was given a placebo. The study was carried out in the traditional double-blind placebo-controlled fashion.

The knees of the subjects were x-rayed three times: at the very beginning, after one year and after three years. For a healthy person, there would be a significant joint space width between the bones in the knee, due to the presence of the cartilage. As long as that person stayed healthy (i.e. free of OA), the joint space width would remain about the same over time, because new cartilage would be produced at the same rate that the old cartilage was being worn away, thus keeping the system in equilibrium. If the person were a victim of OA, however, the joint space width would become narrower over time, as compared to a healthy knee, due to a diminished amount of cartilage in the diseased knee, as a result of a lack of equilibrium between destruction and reconstruction of cartilage. If a victim of OA experienced further progression of the disease, moreover, there would be a further decrease in the joint space width over time, due to further loss of cartilage due to wear-and-tear, but without the equivalent level of reconstruction.

In the study by Reginster's team, they found that patients taking the placebo lost joint space width (i.e. cartilage was lost) over time. The patients taking the glucosamine sulfate, on the other hand, however, showed no significant loss of joint space width (i.e. cartilage was not lost).

Another finding of the Reginster team was that the symptoms of the placebo group got worse over time, whereas the symptoms of the glucosamine sulfate group improved over time.

2. The second study, by Pavelka et al., was entitled: "Glucosamine Sulfate Use and Delay of Progression of Knee Osteoarthritis: A 3-Year, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, Double-Blind Study." In this study, the authors studied a total of 202 patients, divided into two groups. One group took the placebo for three years, while the other group took glucosamine sulfate for three years. Again, they studied both the joint space width and the symptoms over time. They found that the placebo group lost joint space width (i.e. cartilage was lost) over time, while the glucosamine sulfate group did not lose joint space width (i.e. cartilage was not lost). As for the symptoms changes, they found the placebo group experienced a modest improvement over time, but the glucosamine sulfate group experienced up to 20% to 25% improvement in symptoms over time.

The other component of Knees Ease is chondroitin sulfate. There have also been numerous studies on the effect of chondroitin sulfate on joint space width.

3. As reported in their article "Effects of oral chondroitin sulfate on the progression of knee osteoarthritis: a pilot study", Uebelhart et al. conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled study using chondroitin sulfate. They found that the group treated with chondroitin sulfate experienced a stabilization of the joint space width, but the group taking the placebo continued to lose joint space width. They also found that certain biochemical markers were stabilized in the chondroitin sulfate group, but continued to remain abnormal in the placebo group. In addition, the chondroitin sulfate group experienced significantly less pain and greater mobility than the placebo group.

4. Another study, "Radiological progression of internal femoro-tibial osteoarthritis in gonarthrosis. Chondro-protective effect of chondroitin sulfates ACS4-ACS6", by P. Mathieu, also double-blind and placebo-controlled, showed a similar sort of differences: the chondroitin sulfate group showed no significant loss in joint space width, whereas the placebo group did have a significant loss of joint space width.

A loss of joint space width (or, alternatively stated, a progression in joint space narrowing) can be used as a measure of a worsening of osteoarthritis. All the above studies demonstrate that the progression of joint space narrowing is eliminated by the use of glucosamine sulfate or chondroitin sulfate. Although all the subjects treated with these two compounds already were victims of osteoarthritis, it seems reasonable to me that a person without osteoarthritis (OA), or one in the early stages of OA, could benefit from taking these two compounds in Knees Ease. Why should one wait until he has a serious problem? We are all familiar with the saying that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure! Therefore, it is my personal opinion that our product, Knees Ease, can help prevent, or retard the progression of, osteoarthritis. However, I urge all our readers to consult these four references and make up their own minds. It would be inappropriate for me to make a claim here. I am just expressing my own personal opinion.

The references to these four studies follow:

1. Long-term effects of glucosamine sulfate on osteoarthritis progression: a randomised, placebo-controlled clinical trial.

Reginster J.Y., Deroisy R., Rovati L.C., Kee R.L., Lejeune E., Bruyere O., Giacovelli G., Henrotin Y., Dacre J.E., Gossett C.--- Lancet 2001 Jan 27; 357 (9252): 251-6

2. Glucosamine Sulfate Use and Delay of Progression of Knee Osteoarthritis: A 3-Year, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, Double-Blind Study.

Pavelka K., Gatterova J., Olejarova M., Machacek S., Giacovelli G., Rovati L.C.---Arch. Intern. Med. 2002 Oct 14; 162(18):2113-23

3. Effects of oral chondroitin sulfate on the progression of knee osteoarthritis: a pilot study.

Uebelhart D., Thornar E.J., Delmas P.D., Chantraine A., Vignon E. --- Osteoarthritis Cartilage 1998 May; 6 Suppl A: 39-46

4. Radiological progression of internal femero-tibial osteoarthritis in gonarthrosis. Chondro-protective effect of chondroitin sulfates ACS4-ACS6.

Mathieu P.--- Presse Med 2002 Sep 14; 31(29):1386-90

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