Glucosamine HCI
Glucosamine supplements will normally contain either glucosamine sulfate or glucosamine HCl (glucosamine hydrochloride). Supplements containing glucosamine HCl will be more concentrated than supplements using glucosamine sulfate, and this is one of the reasons why supplement manufacturers often prefer to use the hydrochloride form of glucosamine in their products.

HCl stands for hydrogen (H) and Chloride (Cl- ion). Hydrochlorides are salts that you create by letting hydrochloric acid react with an organic base, normally an amine. Glucosamine HCl is very easy for the human gastrointestinal tract to absorb, just like most other compounds in hydrochloric forms. When you consume glucosamine HCl, you can expect it to be absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract within 15-30 minutes. Preparing compounds as hydrochlorides is therefore very popular among pharmaceutical companies and dietary supplement manufacturers. By converting otherwise insoluble amines into their hydrochloric form, you can make insoluble amines soluble by both water and acid.

One notable difference between glucosamine HCl and glucosamine sulfate is that glucosamine HCl can be used even by persons who have to stick to a diet very low in sodium. Everyone should watch their sodium intake, but persons suffering from high blood pressure can not allow themselves the luxury of sometimes eating a little too much sodium. Glucosamine HCl does not contain high amounts of sodium per effective dose, because unlike glucosamine sulfate, no sodium is needed to stabilize glucosamine HCl. A dose of glucosamine sulfate can actually consist of up to 30% sodium. Generally speaking, a healthy adult should limit the daily sodium intake to 1 teaspoon.

Since glucosamine HCl and glucosamine sulfate are two different compounds, results obtained from studies and clinical trials where one of them have been used can not automatically be considered true for the other. When you encounter information regarding glucosamine supplements, it is always important to find out which type of glucosamine supplement that has been used.

A number of studies have actually been carried out where researchers have tried to determine the differences between how glucosamine HCl and glucosamine sulfate affect the human body, but the results have been conflicting and more studies are needed before we can know anything for sure. Generally speaking, the human body seems perfectly capable of absorbing glucosamine from both glucosamine HCl and glucosamine sulfate. The important thing for the body is whether or not the glucosamine is bio-available, not whether it is bound to HCl or sulfate. When you consume glucosamine sulfate, the bond is broken and sulfate ions will enter your blood stream. The blood of a human being is always filled with quite a high level of sulfate, and no data from previous studies indicate that sulfate promotes the beneficial effects of glucosamine in any way. If you want to know more, you can for instance take a look at a study carried out by Setnikar et al: “Setnikar L, Palumbo R, Canali S, Zanolo G. Pharmacokinetics of glucosamine in man. Arzneimittelforschung 1993;43:1109-13”.