The goal of supplements is to support and balance normal, healthy functions in the body by helping to fill in the nutritional gaps from our poor diets and toxic challenges.  These studies on joint health and supplements are worth your attention.

Help for Osteoarthritis

Nutrients deliver benefits in two large new studies

Glucosamine and chondroitin as effective as celecoxib

Doctors were interested in the long term effects of glucosamine and chondroitin on severe osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee, compared to standard OA drugs. This study followed 606 participants from 42 European medical centers who took 500 mg of glucosamine hydrochloride plus 400 mg of chondroitin sulfate three times per day, or 200 mg of celecoxib per day.

For the first four months, the celecoxib group had better results, but by six months, both the celecoxib and glucosamine/chondroitin groups had similar recovery from pain, stiffness, joint swelling, and physical function, ranging from 45 to 50 percent improvement in all four measures.

Researchers excluded from the study those with higher chances of heart disease or stomach problems, and participants reported no serious side effects from either treatment, which doctors said proved to be safe.

Reference: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases; January, 2014, Published Online

Chondroitin

In this review of 43 recent studies covering 9,110 people with OA, participants took chondroitin or a placebo from one month to three years. In studies lasting less than six months, those who had taken chondroitin reported less pain and had clinically better pain scores than placebo. Also in these shorter studies, compared to placebo, the chondroitin group had greater physical function, less disability, and better preservation of minimum joint space width.

For studies lasting more than six months, those taking chondroitin had pain scores 9 percent lower than placebo. Overall for all study lengths, knee pain was 13 percent less for those taking chondroitin compared to placebo.

Discussing the findings, doctors said this review of recent studies revealed that chondroitin was safe, and better than placebo in improving pain in those with OA. The doctors are calling for more studies to understand how chondroitin delivers its benefit in OA.

Reference: Cochrane Database for Systematic Reviews; January, 2015, Published Online

Betsy’s Note: Glucosamine and Chondroitin may also thin blood.  Also, they can be sourced from shellfish.  This article is intended for educational purposes only.  It is not intended to diagnose, treat, prevent or cure any disease.  Consult your healthcare provider.

Article copyright 2015 by Natural Insights for Well Being. All rights reserved.  Used with permission.