Glucosamine hydrochloride
Glucosamine supplements will usually contain glucosamine hydrochloride or glucosamine sulfate. Since they are not exactly the same compound, this discrepancy is important to keep in mind. When you obtain information from studies and research projects regarding glucosamine, glucosamine supplements and glucosamine treatments, it is always important to check which type of glucosamine that has been used. Facts true for glucosamine hydrochloride does not necessarily have to be true for glucosamine sulfate and vice versa.

Hydrochlorides are salts that form when hydrochloric acid reacts with an organic base (usually an amine). Pharmaceutical substances, including dietary supplements, are often prepared as hydrochlorides since compounds in this form can be rapidly absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract. Most hydrochlorides are actually absorbed within 15-30 minutes. This is why manufacturers of pharmaceutical products and dietary supplements frequently covert insoluble amines into their hydrochloric form, thereby making them water and acid-soluble.

Glucosamine hydrochloride is more concentrated than glucosamine sulfate and contains much less sodium per effective dose. This is because sodium chloride is necessary to stabilize glucosamine sulfate. If you need to be on a low-sodium diet, glucosamine hydrochloride is therefore a better choice than glucosamine sulfate. Glucosamine sulfate can contain up to 30% sodium. Limiting your daily intake of sodium is a good idea, because high sodium intake has been linked to high blood pressure. During normal circumstances, a healthy adult should not consume more than 1 teaspoons of sodium chloride (i.e. table salt) per day. It should however be noted that we all need to have a certain amount of sodium in our diet, because sodium plays a diverse and imperative role in several physiological processes. Nerve cells will for instance require Na+ (positive sodium ions) for depolarization. Without sodium, the signal transduction in the central nervous system will not work.

Several studies have been carried out in order to determine whether there is any major difference between glucosamine hydrochloride supplements and glucosamine sulfate supplements, but it is still difficult to know for sure. Generally speaking, the human body can use glucosamine from both glucosamine hydrochloride supplements and glucosamine sulfate supplements, since both types contain bio-available glucosamine.

According to a study performed by Setnikar et al, glucosamine sulfate is rapidly split into glucosamine and sulfate ions and absorbed by the human body right after ingestion. When the compounds have been absorbed, the sulfate ions will enter the blood stream. Human blood already have a steady amount of sulfate ions, so it is not reasonable to believe that sulfate ions from glucosamine sulfate is in any way necessary or beneficial for the human body. No data obtained by this study suggested that glucosamine sulfate has any advantage over glucosamine hydrochloride. If you want to know more about this scientific study, it formal name is “Setnikar L, Palumbo R, Canali S, Zanolo G. Pharmacokinetics of glucosamine in man. Arzneimittelforschung 1993;43:1109-13”.