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Best Life reached out to both companies about these lawsuits, and we will update this story with their responses.
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As WebMD explains, glucosamine sulfate is a “natural sugar found in and around the fluid and tissues that cushion your joints,” otherwise known as cartilage. Glucosamine sulfate supplements are widely used to help ease pain for people suffering from osteoarthritis—which is a condition that occurs when cartilage breaks down and often causes joint pain.
As the most common form of arthritis , it is estimated that over 32.5 million people in the U.S. have osteoarthritis, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
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In their suits, the two plaintiffs state that NIH research shows the highest benefit for glucosamine supplements on joint pain is for products that specifically contain glucosamine sulfate.
“Products that contain glucosamine hydrochloride do not seem to work as well,” the health agency states, per the suits. “Some researchers believe that glucosamine hydrochloride might not work as well as glucosamine sulfate. They think the ‘sulfate’ part of glucosamine sulfate is the important factor because sulfate is needed by the body to produce cartilage.”
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Both plaintiffs say that they retailers are “selling dietary supplements that are simply not what they claim to be,” and violating federal and state law as a result.
“A reasonable consumer would believe, as plaintiffs did, that the label statements regarding the identity, quantity, and purity of the affected products would be truthful and not deceptive or misleading,” the two class actions state. “They would not have purchased the affected products had they known that the affected products did not contain the ingredients as represented on the labels, and/or contained adulterants or undisclosed substances.”
