Curcumin supplements help patients with arthritis

In Western countries, arthritis is a common problem. The most common type of arthritis is osteoarthritis, which is a degenerative joint disease. It usually affects persons in their older years. However, it can start in middle age or even earlier, especially if the joint has been injured.

Curcumin is a powerful anti-inflammatory compound, so it's no surprise that it might help with arthritis. In fact, several studies have found a link between the two. Curcumin proved even more effective than an anti-inflammatory drug in a trial of adults with rheumatoid arthritis. Curcumin may help relieve osteoarthritis pain, according to one research. Researchers included 139 participants with knee osteoarthritis symptoms in the trial. They had moderately severe symptoms that required the use of a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID). They were given diclofenac (50 mg twice daily) or curcumin for a month (500 mg, three times daily). And the result is that both treatments relieved arthritis symptoms and helped to a similar degree: 94% of those taking curcumin and 97% of those taking diclofenac reported at least 50% improvement.