Regular glucosamine supplementation and risk of age-related chronic diseases: evidence from a propensity score-matched cohort study

BACKGROUND: Glucosamine is a widely used dietary supplement, particularly among middle-aged and older adults, with potential health benefits beyond joint health. However, its potential role in the prevention of chronic diseases remains uncertain. AIMS: To investigate the association between regular glucosamine use and the risk of age-related non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in a large prospective cohort. METHODS: 269,033 participants in the large prospective cohort (UK Biobank) without NCDs at baseline were included. 1:1 propensity-score matching (PSM) was used to match glucosamine users with non-users. Cox proportional hazard regression was used to estimate the hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). RESULTS: During a median follow-up of 13.8 years, 52,556 participants reported regular glucosamine use. After PSM, 52,525 users and 52,525 non-users were included in the matched cohort. After false discovery rate correction, regular glucosamine use was associated with a significantly lower risk of seven NCDs: esophageal cancer (HR, 0.73; 95% CI, 0.58-0.92), gout (HR, 0.81; 95% CI, 0.72-0.91), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (HR, 0.86; 95% CI, 0.80-0.93), colorectal cancer (HR, 0.86; 95% CI, 0.78-0.94), chronic liver disease (HR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.80-0.94), heart failure (HR, 0.88; 95% CI, 0.81-0.96), and coronary heart disease (HR, 0.92; 95% CI, 0.88-0.96). CONCLUSIONS: Regular use of glucosamine was associated with a reduced risk of several age-related chronic diseases. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings and to clarify its potential role in supporting healthy aging.