MSM

Claims, Benefits: Cures and treats arthritis.

Bottom Line: This is clearly an unproven "remedy." The evidence is mostly anecdotal. The long-term effects are unknown.

Full Article, Wellness Letter, October 2006:

Q: Does MSM help relieve arthritis?

A: There is little to back up this “natural” remedy for arthritis except hype and testimonials. Sold as a dietary supplement, it is often combined with vitamins, glucosamine, and various substances of questionable value.

MSM (methylsulfonylmethane) is a sulfur-containing compound found in minute amounts in many foods and in human blood. Sulfur is necessary for proper functioning of connective tissue, and may play a role in reducing pain impulses. But MSM has never been shown to play any role in body chemistry. And there’s no evidence that its sulfur is absorbed into the connective tissue in arthritic joints.

Claims made for MSM are based primarily on anecdotes. “There is no convincing evidence that MSM helps arthritis,” according to the Arthritis Foundation. And there is no evidence on long-term safety.

Because arthritis pain comes and goes, it’s easy to assume that whatever “remedy” you are trying is what helped. That makes people with arthritis easy targets for marketers. Don’t fall for unproven “miracle” supplements.

UC Berkeley Wellness Letter, October 2006