It has been quite a while since my last post. In the past month, I have taken a much needed break from the triathlon world (except for the interaction with the ISU Triathlon Club...). I have started taking a daily dosage of glucosamine-chondroitin (GC). Many of you might know that this is a supplement that is said to help with joint pains and tissue repair. I am going to go into a little bit of the science of GC and why it is supposed to be helping me with my recurring knee problem.
Glucosamine is an amino sugar that is part of the building block of something called glycosaminoglycans. These glycosaminoglycans make up the primary structure of cartilage.
Chondroitin is a very hydrophilic (water-loving) polysaccharide (sugar) macromolecule. Its properties convey much of the compressive resistance of cartilage.
When doing research on this supplement, however...I found that in studies done by independent research institutes, there is little to no evidence that this supplement will help relieve any sort of joint problems. There have been several outliers of these studies that have shown some improvement over the course of taking GC, but the numbers only equal about 5% of the entire study. The only studies that support a drastic decrease in pain in joints was funded by commercial companies that are in to make a profit off of the prescription of GC to arthritis patients and other clients with joint complications.
This being said, there is little effect of the GC pills except as a placebo effect. This means that taking the pills is more of a psychological benefit than a physical benefit.
Taking time off from exercise is probably helped more than anything else with my knees. I will continue to take the GC pills because I feel like they have had some sort of effect, even if it is psychological.
Now that I am back in the swing of things, I feel much better. My knees are feeling pretty great, my muscles are feeling nice and used again, and overall I'm feeling a lot better.
Thanks for reading!
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