Particularly in the fitness sector - i.e. in bodybuilding and weight training - we have recently been hearing a lot about so-called joint nutrition. These food supplements are usually a mixture of many different individual ingredients.
What are the individual components or ingredients of joint nutrition?
Most joint nutrition supplements contain a mixture of up to 10 different individual ingredients. Below you will find a more detailed description of the 3 most popular ingredients in joint nutrition supplements:
Glucosamine is a so-called amino sugar and is a component of our connective tissue, cartilage and joint fluid, among other things. The term amino sugar means that it is a kind of mixture of amino acid and sugar. The sugar that is most similar to glucosamine is - as the name suggests - glucose. Glucose is also known in bodybuilding circles as dextrose and is used as a source of carbohydrates in whey shakes, among other things. Glucosamine is produced to a small extent by our body from the well-known amino acid glutamine and fuctose 6 phosphate and is found in large quantities in our diet in shellfish such as crabs or prawns. As glucosamine (and also the chondroitin discussed below) is often also produced from these shellfish, these supplements are usually unsuitable for vegans or vegetarians. However, there are also a few supplements on the market that are made from vegan or vegetarian sources. In most cases, glucosamine is the main ingredient in joint nutrition supplements and is becoming increasingly popular both in combination with other ingredients and as a single supplement. Just like glucosamine, chondroitin is a component of our connective tissue, our cartilage and also our synovial fluid. Chondroitin has numerous structural and regulatory functions in our body and is therefore produced by our body just like glucosamine. There are now even clinical applications for both glucosamine and chondroitin. For example, these two ingredients are often used as medication for athrosis (e.g. knee arthrosis). Chondroitin is also mostly used in esterified forms (as explained above). This is usually only one form of chondroitin, namely chondroitin sulphate. MSM stands for methylsulfonylmethane. MSM has recently been increasingly offered as a dietary supplement in the field of joint nutrition as a combination preparation together with glucosamine and chondroitin. This is an organic sulphur compound that can supply our body with sulphur. Although our body only contains around 0.2% sulphur, it is a component of numerous important hormones and enzymes. Sulphur is also found in amino acids such as taurine.
