Researchers reporting in Arthritis and Rheumatology wrote that common dietary supplements like glucosamine and chondroitin don’t significantly improve symptoms or modify arthritis progression.

For their study, researchers accessed patient data from the Osteoarthritis Initiative from 2004 to 2006. Dietary supplement use was self-reported by people enrolled in the program. Patients were regularly tested to assess arthritic progression through physical tests and X-ray exams. Patients also reported their levels of pain, stiffness and physical function using the WOMAC scale.

After analyzing the data, researchers concluded that those who took dietary supplements did not show significant improvement or decreased symptoms compared to those who didn’t take supplements.

“After adjustment for potential confounders with marginal structural models, we found that treatment with glucosamine/chondroitin for 3 years did not appear to bring about relief in symptoms or retardation of disease progression,” the authors wrote “Our data join a growing body of evidence suggesting that glucosamine/chondroitin has no impact on relieving OA symptoms.”

The authors stressed that it’s important healthcare professionals continue to seek out treatment strategies for those affected by osteoarthritis, as it is the most common type of arthritis and leading cause of pain among seniors.

Dr. Silverman comments

This is a very interesting study.

I have always told people with arthritis that ask about these supplements the following two pieces of information:

1. It isn’t clear that they are going to make a difference. They can give it a try and see how their knees respond. If they don’t notice a difference after a month or so, supplement use should be discontinued.

2. I tell them the story of my sister’s 20-year-old horse who was lame until she put this supplement into his feed. Then he began to act like a little pony again.

After looking at the study, I believe there are too many variables and inconsistent factors to conclusively say these supplements don’t work. Instead, I’ll stick to a pattern of belief that has worked throughout my years of practice. If your knee feels better after taking these medications, continue with it, as there’s very little harm that can come from them. If it doesn’t, there’s no need to continue with the pills. I don’t personally sell these medications in my office for a number of reasons, but most importantly because the data that demonstrates that it definitely shows improvement isn’t there.

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