Kiss Joint Discomfort Goodbye—Safely and Naturally

By VRP Staff

Riding a bike… hiking in the woods… working in your garden. These are just a few of the many joys that you’re forced to sacrifice if you suffer from chronic joint pain. In fact, even simple household chores like doing the dishes or cooking dinner can become practically unbearable if you’re one of the 26.9 million Americans who struggle with degenerative arthritis on a daily basis.¹

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a progressive joint disease that “wears and tears” your cartilage over time. OA is marked by inflammatory cytokine imbalances that prevent your joints from properly rebuilding themselves.² Persistent pain, stiffness and restricted movement are just a few of the telltale signs of joint inflammation—and unfortunately, these chronic symptoms can progress with devastating speed.³

Recent studies have revealed that significant cartilage loss can occur within just two years after a diagnosis of OA.⁴ What’s worse, previous injuries or a history of obesity could introduce this disease into your life well before you reach your 60s… and your quality of life could begin to suffer far sooner than you think because of painful joints and immobility.⁵

Obviously, putting the brakes on progressive joint destruction is your first line of defense against the development of OA—and the sooner you can slow down this damaging cycle, the better.

The key to this effort is finding long-term, sustained sources of protection. For example, clinical research has shown that glucosamine sulfate can exert a moderate protective effect within two years of use—while chondroitin sulfate also delivers a small but significant benefit over the same length of time.⁶ Likewise, placebo-controlled trials indicate that methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) can dramatically improve joint health in OA patients—while Type II collagen supplementation has been shown to lower arthritis symptom scores by as much as 33 percent.^7-8

In addition, animal studies reveal that the natural compound silica can increase critical bone mineral density—which is why Vitamin Research Products combined it with all the nutrients above in a single daily, joint-nourishing formula called Nutri-Joint.⁹ Consider pairing this formula with a high-molecular-weight form of hyaluronic acid—such as HA Lozenges, also available from VRP—to produce comprehensive, clinically proven protection that can support your joints for years to come.¹⁰

Of course, relieving discomfort and boosting mobility are equally important in effective joint support —and luckily, nature offers safe solutions for these concerns, too. A daily dose of DL-phenylalanine can increase the activity of your body’s own pain-relieving pathways, while curcumin—one of the active compounds from the herb turmeric—can inhibit inflammatory enzymes, including cyclooxygenase-2 (COX2), lipoxygenase (LOX), and inducible nitric oxide sythase (iNOS).^11-12

Meanwhile, the popular herb Boswellia serrata has been proven to curb inflammation, reduce swelling and increase both flexibility and walking distances in patients with arthritic knees.¹³ The protein-dissolving proteolytic enzyme nattokinase can also be helpful, due to its unique ability to break down fibrin,¹⁴ a process that is closely linked to control of inflammation.

The best part? You don’t have to stuff your medicine cabinet with every one of these solutions just to get back on your feet again—because VRP has included them all in one effective, natural formula called Back in Action™. Combining Back in Action with Nutri-Joint and HA Lozenges can improve joint health and enhance mobility.

References:

1. Lawrence RC, Felson DT, Helmick CG, Arnold LM, Choi H, Deyo RA, Gabriel S, Hirsch R, Hochberg MC, Hunder GG, Jordan JM, Katz JN, Kremers HM, Wolfe F (National Arthritis Data Workgroup). Estimates of the prevalence of arthritis and other rheumatic conditions in the United States. Part II. Arthritis Rheum. 2008 Jan;58(1):26-35.

2. Martel-Pelletier J, Boileau C, Pelletier JP, Roughley PJ. Cartilage in normal and osteoarthritis conditions. Best Pract Res Clin Rheumatol. 2008;22(2):351-384.

3. Zhang W, Doherty M, Peat G, et al. EULAR evidence based recommendations for the diagnosis of knee osteoarthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 2009 Sep 17. Published online ahead of print.

4. Raynauld JP, Martel-Pelletier J, Berthaiume MJ, et al. Quantitative magnetic resonance imaging evaluation of knee osteoarthritis progression over two years and correlation with clinical symptoms and radiologic changes. Arthritis Rheum. 2004;50(2):476-487.

5. Golightly YM, Marshall SW, Callahan LF, Guskiewicz K. Early-onset arthritis in retired National Football League players. J Phys Act Health. 2009 Sep;6(5):638-43.

6. Lee YH, Woo JH, Choi SJ, Ji JD, Song GG. Effect of glucosamine or chondroitin sulfate on the osteoarthritis progression: a meta-analysis. Rheumatol Int. 2010 Jan;30(3):357-63.

7. Kim LS, Axelrod LJ, Howard P, Buratovich N, Waters RF. Efficacy of methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) in osteoarthritis pain of the knee: a pilot clinical trial. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2006 Mar;14(3):286-94.

8. Crowley DC, Lau FC, Sharma P, Evans M, Guthrie N, Bagchi M, Bagchi D, Dey DK, Raychaudhuri SP. Safety and efficacy of undenatured type II collagen in the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee: a clinical trial. Int J Med Sci. 2009 Oct 9;6(6):312-21.

9. Kim MH, Bae YJ, Choi MK, Chung YS. Silicon supplementation improves the bone mineral density of calcium-deficient ovariectomized rats by reducing bone resorption. Biol Trace Elem Res. 2009 Jun;128(3):239-47.

10. Kalman DS, Heimer M, Valdeon A, Schwartz H, Sheldon E. Effect of a natural extract of chicken combs with a high content of hyaluronic acid (Hyal-Joint) on pain relief and quality of life in subjects with knee osteoarthritis: a pilot randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial. Nutr J. 2008 Jan 21;7:3.

11. Russell AL, McCarty MF. DL-phenylalanine markedly potentiates opiate analgesia - an example of nutrient/pharmaceutical up-regulation of the endogenous analgesia system. Med Hypotheses. 2000 Oct;55(4):283-8.

12. Menon VP, Sudheer AR. Antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of curcumin. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2007;595:105-125.

13. Kimmatkar N, Thawani V, Hingorani L, et al. Efficacy and tolerability of Boswellia serrata extract in treatment of osteoarthritis of knee—a randomized double blind placebo controlled trial. Phytomedicine. 2003 Jan;10(1):3-7.

14. Urano T, Ihara H, Umemura K, et al. The profibrinolytic enzyme subtilisin NAT purified from Bacillus subtilis Cleaves and inactivates plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1. J Biol Chem. 2001 Jul 6;276(27):24690-24696.