Glucosamine is better known for it’s beneficial effects on the joints...

...and specifically in the prevention and amelioration of arthritis, and it is also less known for it’s beneficial effect on skin firmness. However, the positive effect of glucosamine on the fight against obesity is not as widely mentioned, despite the fact that evidence supporting this function has been available for several years now.

The latest study that examines the action of glucosamine against adiposity suggests that glucosamine acts directly on the fat cells by not only inhibiting their function but also by inhibiting the creation of new fat cells in the first place!

Anti-obesity effect of sulfated glucosamine by AMPK signal pathway in 3T3-L1 adipocytes | Research Update

{Food and Chemical Toxicolology: Kong CS, Kim JA, Kim SK}

Fat cells are created by a process called differentiation from precursor cells, called preadipocytes (you can imagine preadipocytes as "baby fat cells" that haven't yet decided to grow into fully grown fat cells or maybe change and become fibroblasts, a.k.a. collagen cells)! This process depends on several nutritional and hormonal factors.

In this study scientists have investigated the effect of glucosamine sulfate, a common form of glucosamine found in food supplements and advanced anti-cellulite creams, on adipogenesis (creation of new fat cells) occurring during differentiation of preadipocytes into adipocytes by measuring fat accumulation and adipogenesis-related proteins and enzymes.

The results of the study show that treatment of fat cells with glucosamine sulfate reduced the triglyceride content (fat content) in fat cells and enhanced glycerol release for the fat cells. Adipocyte glycerol release always indicates fat breakdown and fat release from the cell. Higher concentrations of glucosamine were foudn to produce more pronounced fat release from the fat cells than lower concentration.

In addition, glucosamine was found to reduce adipogenesis-related factors and adipogenesis gene expression and increased adipocyte levels of AMPK. The researchers' conclusion was that AMPK was the primary factor of the anti-obesity effect of glucosamine in fat cells.

Glucosamine as an ingredient for cellulite creams

These results confirm our position that glucosamine can play an important role against cellulite as an anti-cellulite cream ingredient, ideally in combination with several other anti-cellulite ingredients for a more pronounced, synergistic effect. Glucosamine has also potential as a fat-loss nutritional supplement too, in addition to it’s use against arthritis.

Extra information about glucosamine

Glucosamine (in the form of N-Acetyl-Glucosamine) is also a constituent part of hyaluronic acid, together with glucuronate (glucuronic acid). Hyaluronic acid is an important molecule that keeps the skin hydrated, prevents skin ageing and is an important constituent part of the synovial fluid (the fluid that lubricates all joints in the body). For these reasons, hyaluronic acid is also an important constituent of anti-ageing creams and some advanced cellulite creams.