When you discuss "injuries", most of you are thinking about the common broken bone and sprained ankle. However, there is a more insidious kind of injury that can leave you with debilitating pain for the rest of your life.

When arthritis develops as a result of injuries, it is generally referred to as "secondary" osteoarthritis. That means the deterioration of the cartilage was caused by a traumatic injury to begin with. As a general rule, it takes years after the injury before it develops.

The total number of joints in the human body depends on how one defines the types of joints being counted. Regardless of how you count them, there are over 100 joints that have cartilage protecting bones from coming into contact with one another. It is the degradation of this cartilage that leads people into a lifetime of debilitating pain from arthritis.

What can you do?

There is, however, something you can do now that will protect your joints and cartilage and ease any pain you may currently be experiencing. Using liquid glucosamine and chondroitin may ease your pain quickly. With the recently released clinical studies indicating the power of these ingredients, the market is literally flooded with competing products. So how do you select the product that is the right glucosamine for you?

As a general rule, the lower the grade of the product, the less pain relief you will get. Using medium grade products, it will take 5-6 months for you to see relief. The same is true for the process of rehabilitating cartilage. On the other hand, a high-quality product will usually ease your pain in 10-25 days, depending on the extent of your disease. As well, the rehabilitation process may begin immediately. When choosing among glucosamine products a pharmaceutical quality liquid formula most likely will bring the maximum relief and protection. In addition, a high quality liquid glucosamine formula might do wonders for those recovering from orthopedic surgery.

Given the availability of glucosamine without prescription, the smart athlete is already taking a liquid glucosamine to help his or her joint cartilage. With its low cost, it's a smart move both for the short term and the long one. After all, there is no sense in paying the physical price for doing the things we enjoy. For my recommendation on glucosamine arthritis formulas, please read the A Guide to Glucosamine Products.

More information on glucosamine and cartilage rehabilitation can be found in our Arthritis Resource Center and in our Glucosamine Resource Center.

J.R. Rogers is the founder and President of Activex America, Inc. makers of Liquid Glucosamine Formula Syn-flex®

Last updated: 1/31/05