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Okay, so earlier this year when one of the possible diagnoses was arthritis (my hands feel fine now, thanks), I was advised to start taking glucosamine. So I went out and bought some glucosamine tablets, the kind you only have to take once a day, and they were colossal, so big that I really felt uncomfortable having them in my throat, and so most days I ended up not taking them. Eventually I went back to the drug store and found that they had the same substance, in the same dosage, in a chewable once-a-day tablet, for the same price. I bought those and have been pretty much faithfully chewing them ever since.

So here's my question: Why isn't everything chewable? After finally reading some nutrition labels and doing a little math, I figured I could use some vitamin supplements--but they all come in tablets. Why? Am I the only one who'd rather chew something before swallowing it? Or are they more effective if they dissolve in the stomach? Or what?

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I think a lot of vitamins aren't chewable because they taste terrible, pretty much.

Hm... maybe if they were covered in ketchup...

I don't know about them being more effective, but I think taste is a big factor. Usually chewables have sugars and flavorings in them.

Maybe there is a cultural belief that chewables are for kids.

Of course, there are always Vitaballs (http://www.vitaball.com).

Hmmm, to me, being full of sugar is a good thing, but I can see the objection.

I vote for more chewable things too. I got a glucosamine pill stuck in my throat today, too.

I just break my glucosamine tablets into pieces. But now I'm going to look for chewable ones.

rawrin will tell you some, uh, thought-provoking things about supplements in tablet form. Ask her about vitamins. I went and got chewable vitamins after she explained.

I eventually found a chewable vegetarian multivitamin, but it took forever. Even at the generally vegetarian-friendly Whole Foods, I only found one product that met all my requirements. (Chewable, vegetarian, and looks vaguely like it might be healthy.)

The chewable glucosamine I've been ingesting is called FlexAble, and it's actually a glucosamine/chondroitin/vitamin c mix. But now I've been reading up on where these things come from, and I may have to explore other options.

I've read that frequent taking of vitamin C powders and chewable vitamins damages the enamel on one's teeth.

But it's probably a better alternative to arthritic pain.

the question your readers have is: did the glucosamine work?

Impossible to know. In the face of hand pain, I started taking glucosamine, taking prescription-strength naproxen, applying ice to my fingers, improving my posture, using the computer less, and, sadly, playing less music. All I know is, I still had some pain when I started my trip, and it was gone by the end of it.

I'm still taking the glucosamine because, well, osteoarthritis still seems like a risk, and I might as well be preventative. Although I've just read that glucosamine and chondroitin are generally made from shellfish shells and cow cartilage. Argh.

I am against chewing! Chewing means it lingers and you have to sit there thinking about how you've just taken this THING. Swallowing means you can forget about it, unless you get it stuck in your throat, in which case you can cry.

Well, I am always looking for opportunities to cry.

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