Is Chondroitin Really Necessary for Joint Health?

There are hundreds of glucosamine-containing products available on the market today. These products are sold for joint health, joint pain, osteoarthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis. Additionally, most of the glucosamine products also contain chondroitin as a second ingredient. In this article, we address two questions about these products:

1. Is the chondroitin really necessary?

2. Are there alternatives to chondroitin we should consider?

Background

Ask anyone who has osteoarthritis, and they will tell you how painful this condition can be. But what is it? Simply put, osteoarthritis is caused when the cartilage between joints begins to erode and fade, resulting in painful bone-to-bone rubbing at the joint. The knees and hips are most commonly affected, but elbows, fingers, and shoulders can also be effected. Osteoarthritis is commonly experienced by retired professional athletes, or anyone who has repetitive motion over many years. Excessive weight over many years can also cause osteoarthritis.

Glucosamine has emerged as a dietary supplement to help deal with the pain associated with osteoarthritis. The logic behind its use is quite sound. Why? Because glucosamine is a building block of glycosaminoglycans, the major component of joint cartilage. Thus, by adding glucosamine in our diets via supplements, out bodies can take these building blocks and make more of the glycosaminoglycans our joints are losing from the disease. As a result, glucosamine can help relieve joint pain, and in some cases slow the progression of the disease.

What about chondroitin?

On the surface, the same logic holds for taking chondroitin. Chondroitin is also a component of cartilage. So taking chondroitin orally, especially along with glucosamine, should also help with joint health. However, there is a problem with this argument Namely, the amount of chondroitin that actually gets into our systems through oral ingestion is fairly low. Further, there is some, but not a lot of evidence supporting the notion combination of glucosamine and chondroitin is more effective than glucosamine alone. Our general advice is if you are already taking this combination, and if it is helping, then there is little point stopping or changing your joint health dietary supplement regimen. But this begs, two questions:

Do I really need the chondroitin?

Our general advice is if you are already taking this combination, and if it is helping, then there is little point stopping or changing your joint health dietary supplement regimen.

Are there alternatives to chondroitin?

Absolutely. There are two supplements that we think can provide your joint health supplement with the boost you may be looking for:

MSM, or methylsufonylmethane, gained in popularity around 2002-2003 for a number of ailments. More recently, several clinical trials have shown that MSM may help with both function and pain in osteoarthritis and other joint ailments.

Antioxidants such as Vitamin C are useful for a number of conditions. However, many common antioxidants, such as Vitamin C, are eliminated very quickly from our systems. As a result, they may not be as helpful as we would think. Ideally, we would like an antioxidant to "stick" to the joints to deliver antioxidant power directly where it is needed. Fortunately, there is a family of antioxidants known as proanthocyanidins. Extracted from red grape skins, proanthocyanidins are much more powerful than resveratrol. And, they can "stick" to collagen, delivering antioxidant power directly to inflamed and arthritis joints.

Enzymes, such as bromelain, are also a promising family of supplements for joint health, osteoarthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis. These are believed to work by naturally stimulating our immune systems to respond positively to inflammation...like calling the firemen to douse a flame!

Summary

For decades, glucosamine and chondroitin have been used for joint health and osteoarthritis. Today, science has discovered other supplements which may be better than this traditional approach. Thus, anyone concerned about joint health should research these other supplements, and seek guidance for choosing the right one for their particular condition and needs.