Knee Supplements
There are many other supplements and natural products that may help you if you have knee or other joint pain and I urge you to check out those sections of my book FrameWork. In this day and age, natural interventions are a great option. Many individuals are frightened when it comes to taking prescription or over the counter arthritis medications. Much of this was prompted by NSAIDs like Vioxx and Bextra being taken off the market because of safety issues. Supplements like Glucosamine, Chondroitin Sulfate and ASU are safe and effective and many individuals are able to lower their NSAID does or even go off NSAIDs completely once they have started supplements.
The key to Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate is to be sure you are getting a high quality brand like Cosamin ASU or CosamimDS. Also you must remain on these supplements for at least two or three months before deciding whether they are effective for you or not. Unlike prescription medications, these are not rapid active but rather are slow acting in terms of building up in your system and providing a positive effect for you. Also remember that not everyone responds but to be sure that indeed you are a responder or not, choose a high quality brand and give it time.
Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate are thought to work through several mechanisms of action. There is a synergy with them, which means that they tend to work better when taken together. THe same is true with ASU. Together they work in synergy helping your joints and protecting them in several ways. It is believed that they help the repair and rebuilding process of your joint surfaces and also prevent breakdown. In that sense, they are also chondroprotective. This is an important potential function since most other medications used for arthritis only control the symptoms, this actually is though to modify the course of the disease by protecting the joint from further damage and breakdown.