GLUCOSAMINE. Save £60 a Year

theloft

HEALTHSPAN are offfering a BOGOF on their top selling Glucosamine with Marine Chondroitin tablets. These contain 500mg GL. plus 100mg CH. Normally 120 tabs. for £7.95 you get 240 for £7.95 AND POST & PACKING FREE !! Order on Freephone 0800 73 123 77.
Quote code STEL-AM18. Ad placed in Telegraph (daily and Sun). Offer valid until 18 Apr 07.

theloft

Had an email from Healthspan to-day - They are now offering FREE P & P on ALL orders, irrespective of the value!

Lurker

Could someone (Ted?) explain the difference between the 2KCL and HCL glucosamine?
Particularly bearing in mind that I'm looking at getting vegetarian glucosamine.

Healthspan (90 for £5.95) and Simplysupplements (360 for £6.99) do vegetarian HCL 750mg, and Healthspan claims:
"Glucosamine Sulphate 2KCl is approximately 75% Glucosamine Sulphate and 60% pure Glucosamine. Vegetarian Glucosamine HCl is 83% pure Glucosamine!"

However healthydirect.co.uk does vegetarian 2KCL (360 tablets for 10.99) and say:
"Each of our Vegetarian Glucosamine tablets provide you with 750mg of Glucosamine Sulphate 2KCl, which is the ONLY vegetarian form of Glucosamine Sulphate 2KCl currently available in the UK market. Moreover, the majority of clinical trials that have shown a positive benefit from the use of Glucosamine, have all been conducted using the Sulphate form, not Glucosamine Hydrochloride. Therefore, we provide you with the only vegetarian form of the same compound that has been used in successful clinical trials."

I don't mind getting the more expensive version, as long as I'm getting the best option!
Your help would be appreciated!

oap

Although we get our glucosamine and choindroitin on prescription, you can buy it in liquid form, at £7 a bottle called Jointflex, from the local chemist, or Boots, which lasts a month. We had trouble swallowing the large tablets which got stuck!!!Regards oap

theloft

oap wrote: »

Although we get our glucosamine and choindroitin on prescription, you can buy it in liquid form, at £7 a bottle called Jointflex, from the local chemist, or Boots, which lasts a month. We had trouble swallowing the large tablets which got stuck!!!Regards oap

According to the JointFlex website, the bottles of Glucosamine & Chondroitin combination cost £12.99. The Glucosamine on it's own is £7.99. Is your chemist cutting the price ?? Also I noticed that to make the bottle of JointFlex last for 30 days, you are only taking 10ml which only gives you a third of the daily requirement. If you take the recommended 30 ml it will only last for 10 days. My wife uses the ZIPVIT Joint-Genie (mentioned earlier on this thread.) A bottle of GL & Chond. combined costs £9.95 and even taking the recommended dose it will last for 36 days. However if you go for their Buy 2 Get 3 offer, you get 108 days supply for £19.90. https://www.zipvit.co.uk

oap

Hi, am going to collect prescription today, so will find out the exact price for y ou, regards oap

oap

Well you are quite right, it is £12.99 a bottle both on their website and I rang Boots this morning and it is £12.99 a bottle there, however, when I asked our local chemist quite a long time ago the assistant told me it was £7 odd a bottle, and that is what I have been thinking it is ever since.

My doctor has prescribed three five ml spoonfuls daily,and that is what I take, it is 500mg/400mg.

Maybe it will work, maybe it won't, so far it hasn't, but I understand you have to take it for quite a while before it has any effect. On the bottle it says do not exceed 30 ml cap servings per day. I take 15ml so that is half the dose, however, it does say on the bottle 'up to' so our doc must think that is what I need.

Regards to all, oap

Ted_Hutchinson

Lurker wrote: »

Could someone (Ted?) explain the difference between the 2KCL and HCL glucosamine?

The answer is in the sentence before the exerpt from the Healthy Direct blurb you quoted.
This is why we have developed our vegetarian product, which has been extracted from Maize (corn). There are other Vegetarian Glucosamine products that have recently been launched in the UK. However, these are all Glucosamine HCl (Hydrochloride), as opposed to Glucosamine Sulphate 2KCl (di-potassium Chloride). Glucosamine Sulphate 2KCl is the most popular and favoured form of Glucosamine as a supplement, and is the one that you all know and love!

So the form of Veggie Glucosamine HealthyDirect sell is the same chemical as found in the none veggie shellfish derived product but from maize rather than shellfish.

Healthspan say Glucosamine Sulphate 2KCl versus Glucosamine HCl
Until now, all Healthspan Glucosamine products have been supplied as Glucosamine Sulphate 2KCl. Glucosamine, also exists in the Hydrochloride (HCl) form, which because it is not bound to a potassium salt, contains more Glucosamine gram for gram. This is the form that has been used for Vegetarian Glucosamine. Glucosamine Sulphate 2KCl is approximately 75% Glucosamine Sulphate and 60% pure Glucosamine. Vegetarian Glucosamine HCl is 83% pure Glucosamine!

The problem from my point of view is that I only like to suggest people use supplements that have been shown to work and for which there are research papers describing what was used and what the effect was and how this compared with placebo medicines. Now there are plenty of research papers for Glucosamine Sulphate but not for Glucosamine Hydrochloride. I read a paper saying that the Hydrochloride version isn't well absorbed (but can't find it now and the weather is too nice to be inside so I'm not searching for it now) so if the the usual veggie version hasn't been so extensively tested and there is some doubt as to it's effectiveness (you may find it actually works for you and if you do then that is fine for you) then the HealthyDirect veggie version which is the same chemical as usually derived from shellfish sources, should be the best bet.
I'm glad you've pointed out that there are veggie glucosamine that aren't hydrochloride as I wasn't aware of that.
Do remember Healthy Direct via Quidco provide a substantial cashback.

Ted_Hutchinson

oap wrote: »

Maybe it will work, maybe it won't, so far it hasn't, but I understand you have to take it for quite a while before it has any effect. On the bottle it says do not exceed 30 ml cap servings per day. I take 15ml so that is half the dose, however, it does say on the bottle 'up to' so our doc must think that is what I need.

Zipvit
Joint Genie - Glucosamine Liquid - Three bottles for the price of two! - 3x360ml 1080ml - 108 days supply £19.90

Joint Genie Glucosamine and Chondroitin Liquid - Four bottles for the price of three! - 4x360ml 72days supply (you need 20ml/d) £29.85

Both the above contain Glucosamine Sulphate rather than the veggie form.

theloft

oap wrote: »

Maybe it will work, maybe it won't, so far it hasn't, but I understand you have to take it for quite a while before it has any effect. On the bottle it says do not exceed 30 ml cap servings per day. I take 15ml so that is half the dose, however, it does say on the bottle 'up to' so our doc must think that is what I need. Regards to all, oap

Does your doc really know about Glucosamine recommended doses. If you read back on this thread and in particular Ted Hutchisons posts, the recommended effective amount for Glucosamine is 1500mg per day. So you are only taking the equivalent of 750 mg per day. This surely cannot 'work' ! Why don't you ask him to check.