The most commonly asked questions we came across whilst researching our osteo bi flex review.
Osteo bi flex should work to reduce joint pain, with glucosamine actually being a prescription option in some countries the product itself does contain ingredients with enough scientific backing that it's claims are quite reasonable. However, as with all supplements and medications it won't necessarily work for everyone.
Realistically, excluding allergens and specific interactions the most likely side effects of osteo bi flex are going to be nausea. High doses of glucosamine however can cause puffy eyes, and this dosage is not suitable for people with certainly familial conditions, for example it can increase the risk of glaucoma and due to it's effect on blood sugar should be avoided with those on medications for diabetes. It can also effect blood pressure.
You shouldn't take osteo bi flex if you are on blood thinners as glucosamine amplifies the effects.
Osteo Bi Flex gets a lot right in the way of ingredients, although there are a couple of choices that we wouldn't recommend.
Vitamin C is an odd choice for a joint health supplement, with there being multiple options of vitamins which would be better and are in the best joint supplements, vitamin D for example has been shown to reduce joint pain in people who are deficient, and vitamin K is essential for joint health. Vitamin C [1] however, is a much rarer deficiency that D or K which effect more than half of the US population, and whilst it is essential for joint health could've been replaced with something more useful.
There's a decent amount of evidence that manganese [3] if combined with glucosamine and chondroitin reduces osteoarthritis pain, and Osteo bi flex contains both of these other ingredients, so this is a much better pick
Sodium is an odd choice, low sodium can cause joint pain, but equally too much sodium can cause inflammation making joint health worse. We really don't like this as an inclusion as the average American diet already contains too much sodium, this is quite a negative for our osteo bi flex review. [4]
Glucosamine dosed at 1500mg is on the high side for a combined supplement, with 500 mg to 3 grams of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate being recommended, typically to be taken for at least 1 month to treat joint pain. [5] Making it pretty much the max recommended dose. Unfortunately this does mean it can have some side effects, but this will be where the main benefits of taking osteo bi flex come from.
Boswellia serrata is a standard amongst the best joint supplements, with it reducing inflammation, it's dosed correctly at 100mg, it's nothing particularly special for a good joint supplement, but a solid inclusion all the same.
The proprietary blend of MSM and Chondroitin sulfate is a little irritating. Because at 1100mg it does mean that both ingredients cannot be ideally dosed, meaning we don't know which is actually going to be in the effective range. We expect that it's Chondroitin as MSM would need to be 99% of this blend to be effective. Which Chondroitin has some use in a joint supplement, it's largely to support the efficacy of glucosamine and doesn't really do much by itself.
1 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6643354/
2 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5537775/
3 - https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Manganese-HealthProfessional/
4 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5640209/
5 - https://www.arthritis.org/health-wellness/treatment/complementary-therapies/supplements-and-vitamins/supplement-and-herb-guide-for-arthritis-symptoms