A Large Study of Anti-Inflammatory Dietary Supplements Showed Positive Effects

an analysis by Ski Chilton, Ph.D.

Osteoarthritis is a huge problem that affects more than 50 million people in the United States alone. In early 2006, the National Institutes of Health released the results of the phase-three Glucosamine/chondroitin Arthritis Intervention Trial (GAIT), which tested the efficacy and safety of the dietary supplements glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate, alone and in combination, for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis. (1) The results were published in the New England Journal of Medicine in February 2006.

During the study, researchers randomly assigned 1,583 patients with knee osteoarthritis to receive 24 weeks of treatment with glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate in combination, Celebrex � or placebo.

The researchers found that the combination of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate was more effective than Celebrex � at relieving moderate-to-severe knee pain and caused no significant adverse effects. Compared to the placebo group, the response rate in the glucosamine/chondroitin combination group was 24.9 percent higher while the response rate in the Celebrex � group was 15.1 percent higher. (1)

It wasn't a complete victory for glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate. The study also found that these dietary supplements, either alone or in combination, were ineffective at relieving mild knee pain. There's no conclusive evidence that the supplements are effective in treating inflammatory conditions other than moderate-to-severe knee pain.

Still, the GAIT results are highly significant. Natural products usually don't get studied in a large-scale, phase-three clinical trial. When they do, the results have often been disappointing.

Literature cited.
1. Clegg DO. Glucosamine, Chondroitin Sulfate, and the Two in Combination for Painful Knee Osteoarthritis. NEJM 2006 ;354;795-808.