Creamy Pain Relief

Outside Help, Inside Pain
Q Can MSM or glucosamine creams ease achy joints?

A Probably not. While most researchers agree that glucosamine supplements can ease joint pain, they doubt that topical creams containing glucosamine or MSM pack the punch their makers claim.

With glucosamine, the problem is absorption, says Erin Arnold, a rheumatologist at the Illinois Bone and Joint Institute in Morton Grove, Illinois. “Glucosamine is a huge molecule, and it’s difficult to figure out how to get it in the cream so it’s absorbed,” she says. If the particles can’t penetrate deeply enough to reach the joint cartilage, they can’t help. One small Australian study recently found a benefit from cream-based glucosamine, but the effect can probably be credited to the camphor that was mixed with it, says Jason Theodosakis, author of The Arthritis Cure. As for MSM, there’s little evidence that it’s helpful in either oral or topical form.

Better bets for natural arthritis creams include those with menthol, camphor, or capsaicin, the ingredient responsible for the heat in hot peppers.