In 1996, the doctors finally got around to operating on my spine. What they had to do is remove leg bone to rebuild my upper spine. (Think about a stiff rod or piece of wood inside your neck and upper back.) Even after surgery, however, I was left with constant pain; had limited mobility in my neck; and was left to rely on narcotic painkillers just to get by. If you are suffering from osteoarthritis pain, I have walked in your shoes.

Fortunately, I'm not a "quitter." I was determined to learn everything I could about osteoarthritis, joint pain and any possible means to restore my body to its formerly healthy state. (Of course, I did not have a clue how I was going to do this.) One thing I did know. The doctors had made it clear to me that my condition would only get worse, even though they had operated in time to keep me out of a wheelchair. I knew then that if I were going to have any chance at all, it would be up to me to find the way.

Fortunately, the pain management specialist who was treating me was from Europe and unlike most doctors, was willing to listen. When I approached him with what I was learning about glucosamine, (it was now 1997) he didn't "shrug it off." Instead, he was impressed with the information I was finding and encouraged me to "give it a try."

(This may be a little technical so just do your best to try to gain a little understanding here.)

Glucosamine is a "chondroprotective agent", which relieves the symptoms of OA without any side effects while at the same time slowing the progression of the disease. And what is a "chondroprotective agent?"

Glucosamine (and chondroitin) is produced naturally within your body. However, it is not produced in sufficient quantities once you have developed osteoarthritis. That is the reason that we must rely on "synthetic" products to replenish our systems.

What has happened to your body when you have osteoarthritis is that the cartilage (that acts as a "cushion" between bones) has deteriorated. Healthy (articular) cartilage is what we need to make movement and motion of our joints pain free (In other words, it allows bones to move across one another providing an ultra-smooth, slippery surface to do so).

Most of the products I was able to buy back then were in either pill or capsule form. Believe me, I was trying just about every one I could afford. Unfortunately, I didn't seem to be making any real progress. My pain hadn't changed and of course, I had no way of knowing what changes if any were going on inside of my body.

If the research was correct, glucosamine should have been taking care of my pain and reversing my osteoarthritis damage. You could not have proved it by using me as an example. It was now late in 1998 and I didn't seem to be getting anywhere. I had to ask myself some tough questions.

Was all that research a waste of time? Or, was my case just so bad that glucosamine was just not going to help? Somehow, I convinced myself that I was on the right track but there was something missing from the equation.

New outside research, confirmed by what I have witnessed myself, has shown that glucosamine in a different form can double the benefits received and dramatically reduce the time it takes for results to be effective. This new form is a liquid glucosamine. Liquid glucosamine offers quite a few benefits over powdered pills or capsules. Here's a comparison:

Based on my personal experience, I can verify that these differences are real. High impact, fast-acting pain relief, and solid, long-lasting effect. If you are currently taking glucosamine in any form other than liquid you are losing out on half of its effect. Later on, I recommend a liquid glucosamine product that gave me great results so keep reading!

With all of the hype surrounding glucosamine, almost every major pharmaceutical company and vitamin manufacturer (among others) has come out with a product. This rush to market is not something that is in your best interests. There are far too many products out there that seem to have appeared only with profits in mind. In a perfect world, companies should be more interested in producing products that are formulated to help you end your suffering.

It is a fair bet to say that you have already been disappointed about glucosamine products you have tried. After all, if glucosamine is the answer then you were expecting your pain to end immediately.

I too had tried the pills and capsules and was disappointed. Too much "filler" and not enough real components to do any good. At one point, I also got around to trying some of those products you apply externally where you experience pain. I got a little pain relief but it was very short-lived.  Eventually, I even tried some of those products that you apply externally to your body. You know, those creams and 'roll-on' products. It was clear right away that they weren't the solution I was looking for either. And then I got lucky.

In late 1999 a friend of mine called to tell me about a liquid glucosamine that he was using to treat his thoroughbred horses. In fact, he had several other friends who were also horse owners and they were using the product as well. But here's where the story got really interesting.

He said that the owners were giving two ounces of the product to their horses every day and then "taking a swig" themselves. That really got my attention since we were talking about a glucosamine product in liquid form. "Do you mean to tell me that the owners are treating their arthritis with this product?" He laughed and replied, "You bet they are and they all feel terrific. No joint pain at all." Of course, my heart skipped a beat. I asked him to send me a "jug" of the product.

To make a long story short, this stuff was incredible. Within ten days, I could move my neck just as if it had never been injured and equally important, I had no pain. I knew that I had found a glucosamine solution that belonged in the hands of everyone who suffered from osteoarthritis. All I had to do was consider some changes in the formula itself.

Most of the cartilage we are discussing contains between 65% and 80% water. The remainder is comprised of collagen and proteoglycans. The collagen portion of cartilage is what gives it elastic-like properties and provides the "shock absorber" qualities that you need for pain-free movement. Of equal importance, the collagen is what holds proteoglycans in place. Now, let's try to make some sense out of this.

Proteoglycans are nothing more than molecules composed of sugar and proteins. What they do inside your cartilage matrix is "wrap" themselves in and around the collagen fibers. So what happens then? The proteoglycans add stretching capability and they act to capture water. Remember, we already said that 65% to 80% of your cartilage is made up of water. It is this squeezing "in and out" activity as your joints are in motion that is facilitated by these proteoglycans. And there is just one final ingredient we need to add to the mix.

The principal producer of both collagen and proteoglycans are chondrocytes. So long as everything is working correctly, you are going to have healthy and vibrant articular cartilage. There is however one down side here. Chondrocytes also produce enzymes that act to "destroy" the older, worn out collagen and proteoglycans. Unfortunately, one negative effect can be the overproduction of enzymes that are destroying collagen and proteoglycans. Another way of putting it is that your body is "working against itself."

Once this essential part of normal joint functioning goes bad, it's a straight downhill run. Of course, that's why you are reading this material right now. You're in pain and you are looking for answers. That pain that's driving you crazy is caused by cartilage that is developing ragged edges and bone that is overgrown. It is "pockmarked" and abrasive. As the problem increases, the lining of your joints is becoming inflammed. (The synovium)

The synovium is the area where nerves and nerve endings are bundled. The inescapable fact is that it's going to send out pain messages. As part of your body's defense mechanism, the synovium is fighting to produce more synovial fluid. It is this fluid that provides your cartilage with its "slippery" qualities. Unfortunately, your synovium goes into "overdrive" and the result is that too much fluid is produced. In turn, this builds up in the joint space and when this happens, things are getting out of control.

I began taking a daily regiment of this liquid glucsaomine, hoping it would help my pain. Within about three weeks my pain had been reduced and limited mobility was restored to my neck. As I mentioned, it only took about ten days and my pain was a thing of the the past. It was an incredible experience and one I knew had to be shared with others.

I contacted a woman I had recently met who had been complaining about how badly osteoarthritis was interfering with her life. She was in pretty tough shape. I sent her a "sample" of this liquid glucosamine to try. These are her words…directly quoted:

"Less than three days after taking liquid glucosamine the severe pain in my knees was gone. I'm now able to walk at the mall, go up and down ladders and after playing with my grandchildren, I am able to get up from the floor without any help. I no longer have to live in pain."

That's all I needed to hear. If she was getting relief this fast with her situation (which was bad) then this compound was everything I believed it to be. While my pain had been reduced dramatically, I did not want to settle there. I was determined to find other ingredients that would perhaps work in conjuction with liquid glucosamine to fully end my pain and halt the progression of my OA.

My "education" in the use of glucosamine has never stopped. In fact, to this day I still spend whatever time I have exploring new avenues. All I knew at this point was that I had found something that was working quickly to end pain. The remaining question was what more I might be able to find that would improve on this success.

I may not have mentioned this before so this is an appropriate time to do so. The original formula for this product used only pharmaceutical-grade glucosamine. Not just one type of glucosamine but two. Glucosamine Sulfate and Glucosamine Hydrochloride. It also contained Chondroitin Sulfate. (Found in Shark Cartilage) That Shark Cartilage acts to "drive" the glucosamine as well.

In addition to those ingredients, I improved on my regiment once again creating even better results.

Bromelaine was added because of its ability to clean away "debris" in the joints and because it aids in restoring proper fluid balance. It also helps to inhibit inflammatory compounds to reduce pain and swelling. Ascorbate (Manganese and ascorbic acid) was added to assist your body's ability to process the glucosamine. (A very important factor and one that is missing in nearly every glucosamine product on the market today.)

Yucca was added because of its long history in treating arthritis and rheumatism. (The root is rich in sponins that elevate your body's ability to produce cortisone naturally. The Omega 3 & 6 fatty acids (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docasahexaenoic acid) are constituents of fish oils that act as anti-inflammatory agents. (Usually, these products are sold separately in health food stores as salmon oil or under other names.)

Each of the vitamins here also plays an important role in regaining healthy joints. Vitamin A (Beta carotene) is essential for growth and repair of body tissues and it aids in bone formation. Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) produces a mobilization of your body's self-defense mechanisms, which assists your immune system to overcome pathological consequences. And finally, Vitamin E (Tocopheral) is an antioxidant, which acts to protect red blood cells and unsaturated fatty acids from oxidation damage. It also assists your body in maintaining healthy membrane tissue.

I experimented with different amount of the ingredients and only after my pain was fully gone, and the progression of my OA had halted completely was I happy with the combination.

As the ingredients were being added and the experiementing continued, the final results were becoming better with every step. Once again, it was time to see if this new combination gave other the amazing results I was receiving.

The second person I suggested these ingredients to was my old friend Lou. After just a week he told me he was able to dance for the first time in years. In total, I tried out my combination with eight other people. I was anxious to hear what they had to say as well.

Lou, Howard, Joan, Ken, Tina, Julia, Joyce, Iris, and Kathy. Without exception they all told me that the combinations had either ended their pain completely or dramatically reduced it. They were astounded. You can imagine how great I felt.

Through the course of my journey to rid my body of my arthritic pain I have learned much. I have tried everything and very little has worked. Glucosamine did work however. But only to an extent. It took a couple more years of testing to really find something that would fully end my pain and stop the progression of osteoarthritis. In order to achieve full results with glucosamine here's a review of what you need to know.

· Liquid glucosamine is more effective than powdered glucosamine.
· Supplements which use high quality, pharmaceutical grade liquid glucosamine are the
  most effective.
· When glucosamine is combined with other beneficial ingredients these often work
  synergistically to provide fast-acting and complete pain relief and halt the progression of
  osteoarthritis.

With my new knowledge of this powerful ingredient combination, I began looking into a way I could put all these ingredients into one formula.

I put together the necessary resources to combine these ingredients. I started with a strong foundation of pharmaceutical grade liquid Glucosamine Sulfate and HCL. I then added each of the complementing ingredients I found to be so beneficial. I included Chondroitin sulfate, shark cartilage, boswellin, bromelaine, omega 3 and 6, vitamins A, C, and E, and yucca powder.

For the past year and a half, I have been conducting a market test in the Tampa Bay area of Florida. I can tell you honestly there has not been a failure yet. Some see results in less that a week, the majority within ten to fifteen days, and everyone within a month at the outside.

Based on this overwhelming local success, I have decided to manufacture this product on a larger scale and get the news out worldwide.

I have formed a company around this product named Activex America, Inc.

I use Syn-Flex myself every day and I highly recommend it. It's been a long road in getting this product to where it is today but worth every step.