These are only a few of many examples of the importance of overall nutritional support in treating arthritis. Dozens of other important nutrients can help arthritis (e.g. niacin, pantothenic acid, B complex, vitamin C, vitamin E, boron, selenium, and zinc). As you can tell, it important to get optimal nutritional support. The vitamin powder makes this easy to do.

Prevent Damage
I recommend a mix of several natural remedies, many of which can be found in combination. The formulation that I like the most combines boswellia, willow bark, and cherry. These are combined in an excellent new product called End Pain (also by Enzymatic Therapy). Using these three together can powerfully decrease many kinds of pain while preventing damaging inflammation. Take 2 tablets 3 times a day until your pain subsides (approximately 2 to 6 weeks) and then you can often lower the dose to 1 tablet 2 to 3 times a day, or as needed. Curcumin can also be a healthful anti-inflammatory but requires the addition of piperine from black pepper for the curcumin to be adequately absorbed. I do not generally recommend that you use these if you take any prescriptions, however, because piperine may potentially also increase the absorption of other medications, causing them to reach toxic levels. Fish oil, _ to 1 Tbsp daily, also has strong anti-inflammatory properties.

Restore Function
Restore function with stretching, exercise, and heat. Exercise at least 20 minutes a day. Swimming, walking, and yoga are good choices. Use a heating pad or moist heat for up to 20 minutes at a time to give relief.

Diet, exercise, and lifestyle can be important in the treatment and prevention of osteoarthritis. For example, losing 11 pounds will reduce a woman’s risk of developing arthritis of the knee by 50 percent over a 10 year period. Adding exercise may further decrease arthritis pain.

Rule Out and Treat Infections and Food Allergies
These can aggravate arthritis. New techniques that combine acupressure and applied kinesiology can be a very powerful way to eliminate allergies and sensitivities. I recommend using a brilliant technique called NAET. It was developed by Dr. Devi Nambudripad (see www.NAET.com for more information). If you also have osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis, I recommend using a spin off-of this technique called JMT (see www.jmt-jafmeltechnique.com for more information). For rheumatoid arthritis, I also use long-term antibiotics (Minocycline) because I feel this is an infectious disease in many cases, and research has shown antibiotics to be effective.

In addition to these four treatment areas, although it may seem silly, copper bracelets have actually been shown in a blinded crossover study to be helpful in relieving arthritis, and I have also seen patients get better using them .

Other Natural Therapies

As noted above, I recommend that you begin with the End Pain formula and glucosamine/MSM. You may also want to try this popular home remedy:
Purple Pectin for Pain. Purchase Certo® in the canning section of your local grocery. It is the thickening agent used to make jams and jellies. Certo contains pectin, a natural ingredient found in plants. Take 1 to 3 Tbsp of Certo in 8 ounces of grape juice 1 to 2 times a day (1 to 2 Tbsp a day is enough for most people, but you can try more). If it' s going to help, you’ll likely know in 7 to 14 days. As the pain disappears, the dose can be reduced to 1 tsp in grape juice once or twice a day as needed. Many people have found this simple, safe, and cheap treatment to be effective.