Blue Sparrow Medical

Joint pain has a broad category of causes including injury, disease, degeneration, fractures or stress from overuse. Causes of joint pain many also include tendon or ligament tears, strains, sprains, pulls, cartilage damage or even tumors.

Age is another issue that affects the severity of joint pain in many people. Although advanced age may not be what causes arthritis, the wear and tear on the body as a result of normal living no doubt affects bones, cartilage and joints. A larger amount of older people than younger have some forms of health problems that affect the joints and its severity does grow with age unless slowed or maintained by sufficient treatment. Many older people assume it is a part of growing older and do not ever really receive proper testing or treatment to alleviate symptoms.

The physical condition that a person keeps himself or herself in can also have an impact on the development of arthritic symptoms. Those who are overweight are at more risk of developing symptoms and can help fend off painful problems by effectively managing his or her weight.

Joint pain may seem like an inevitable problem but relief is available through two substances known as glucosamine and MSM. Glucosamine is naturally found in the connective tissues of the human body, such as those covering the ends of bones in the joints. Glucosamine is thought to help with cartilage formation and repair. Some laboratory tests show that glucosamine sulfate may help protect joint cartilage by limiting breakdown and helping to build up levels of the cartilage. Glucosamine hydrochloride, another form of glucosamine, is considered to be equally effective as the sulfate form. It is absorbed more easily by the body and can be taken in lower dosages with the same effectiveness as glucosamine sulfate.

MSM, Methyl Sulfonyl Methane, is an organic source of sulfur which is widely utilized by the body in the formation of connective tissue. Sulfur is essential to good health but is easily destroyed by modern food processing methods resulting in widespread deficiencies. It is fundamentally important to more than 150 compounds in the body including enzymes, hormones, antibodies and free radical scavengers. Although MSM does not cure arthritis, it reduces swelling that causes pain. It is so effective that doctors use it to reduce their patients’ medication dosage. Some can even discontinue their medications and replace them with MSM sulfur.

Studies have shown that utilizing Glucosamine or MSM, has helped greatly in reducing various types of joint pain so many people have chosen not to deal with.

As we have already seen, GS4, an extract of Gymnema Sylvestre, has been shown to lower blood glucose levels.  The truth is, however, that it does a lot more than that.   

Effects of GS4 on glucose stability was studied in rats. In the first set of experiments, the acute effect of GS4 was examined in both non-diabetic and streptozocin induced mildly diabetic rats. Administration of 1 g of GS4 to 18-hr fasted non-diabetic rats significantly deteriorated the serum glucose response to oral administration of 1 g/kg glucose. The IRI response in GS4-administered rats was lower, but not significantly, than that in non-administered rats. In mildly diabetic rats, a 60 min increment in serum glucose concentrations was significantly reduced by GS4 administration.

In the second set of experiments, the chronic effect of GS4 was examined in mildly diabetic rats. Two weeks after the induction of diabetes, the rats were divided into two groups that had similar impairment of glucose tolerance. The rats were fed for 32-35 days with either a controlled diet or a diet supplemented with GS4. After 4 weeks, GS4 showed a tendency to reduce the serum glucose concentrations in the fed state and to improve the glucose tolerance. Gain in body weight, food intake, pancreas weight and the pancreatic contents of IRI, protein, amylase and trypsinogen were unaffected in the GS4-treated group compared with the controlled. 

The effectiveness of GS4 in controlling hyperglycemia was also investigated in 22 Type 2 diabetic patients on conventional oral anti-hyperglycemic agents.  400 mg of GS4 per day was administered for 18-20 months as an addition to the conventional oral drugs. During GS4 supplementation, the patients showed a significant reduction in blood glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin and glycosylated plasma proteins, and conventional drug dosage could thus be decreased. Five of the 22 diabetic patients were able to discontinue their conventional drug and to stabilize their blood glucose with GS4 alone. 

Evidence thus far has shown the effectiveness of GS4 in controlling blood glucose and hyperglycemia.  With the growing availability of Gymnema Sylvestre, diabetics and others consumers will soon be able to take advantage of this effective supplement.