Diamond Glucosamine does not cure joint pains

Claim: The product named “Diamond Glucosamine” cures joint pains.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The post containing the claim has over 2,800 reactions, 1,300 comments, and 63,000 views on Facebook, as of writing.

The bottom line: Diamond Glucosamine cannot cure joint pains because there is no cure for the ailment.

• Not FDA Approved: Diamond Glucosamine is also not on the Philippine Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) list of approved drugs and food products.

No cure for joint pains: According to the health websites Cleveland Clinic and Healthline, modern science can only alleviate joint pains through over-the-counter medication, exercise, topical treatments, and dietary supplements.  

What experts say about glucosamine: The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) strongly recommends that the public avoid the use of glucosamine, citing discrepancies and bias in the results of industry-sponsored versus publicly funded effectiveness studies for the substance. The ACR said that the data on the effectiveness of glucosamine with the lowest risk of bias indicate that glucosamine lacks efficacy and its perceived effectiveness is only due to a large placebo effect.

• This is supported by the findings of a large-scale trial for glucosamine conducted by the US National Institutes of Health that showed “no significant improvement on knee pain or function” in subjects who received glucosamine.

Glucosamine has side effects: The Mayo Clinic said that although relatively safe, oral use of glucosamine can cause nausea, heartburn, diarrhea, constipation, skin reactions, and headache. Glucosamine can also trigger allergic reactions because one of its sources is the shells of shellfish. – Lorenz Pasion/Rappler.com

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