I recently was told by my Physician I have osteoarthritis in my back, and am trying to find supplements to help with it. I heard that calcium and magnesium citrite are good for your bones. I was looking in the store to find prices and brands, and found some have zinc in them. I was wondering if anyone knows if it is better to have it with the zinc, or without, or doesn't it make much of a difference? I read the bones have a trace of zinc in them, but that doesn't really tell me anything.

I know I should talk to my physician, but let me put it this way. She told me it is arthritis and then gave me a prescription for a muscle relaxer. The muscle relaxer didn't make a bit of difference in how I feel.

Thanks

Daisy:p

Hi Daisy,
Adequate amounts of trace minerals are always important to bone health. I'm not exactly sure what the benfits of adding zinc are, though be aware that zinc has a tendency to deplete the body of copper, and any zinc supplements taken should include an amount of the latter as well. There may be multiple forms of magnesium supplements as well. Magnesium citrate is actually quite an effective mineral laxative, so be aware of this if taking it in larger doses.
Other things you might find beneficial for your arthritis are glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, tart cherry juice, and turmeric. The latter two are strong inhibitors of the COX-II enzyme, and can exibit activity rivaling or even far surpassing that of aspirin. Here is some info on cherry juice:

Drinking Tart Cherry Juice: Does It Really Help Arthritis Pain?

You might find accupuncture, massage or chiropractic work to beneficial as well. I am a bit skeptical about the overall benefits of chemical muscle relaxants for osteoarthritis -- I have it myself in my neck -- and many of these can have a degree of withdrawal effects if not gradually stopped. Though, if they do help, there is probably little harm in taking them short-term.
Hope this is of some help. Take care.

Daisy Dear, it looks as though we have a bit more in common than just loving fish.

I have Rheumatoid Arthritis in my hands and fingers.
It's a little different than Osteoarthritis, but I looked it up my Prescription for Natural Cures book and the treatment was the same for both:
1,500 mg Glucosamine sulfate
600 to 1200 mg Chondroitin sulfate

I can vouch that Thomas's suggestions for glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate really do help.

I buy mine at GNC and it has both combined in one pill.
Each pill has 500mg Glucosamine and 400mg Chondroitin Sulfate
I take it morning, noon and night.

The bottle looks like this
Attachment 3296

I also take SAM-E 400mg for mood and joint health -
This was the first winter that my fingers and hands didn't hurt.

The 3 combined and let me tell you... I have absolutely NO pain in my hands.

The prescription book does not say take SAM-E for Arthritis, I take it for mood, but the added benefit of healthy joint function is a benefit for me.

It took about 6 weeks before I noticed a difference, so if you decide to take it, be consistent with taking it.
I've gone for a year w/o pain, it's just hard getting through the first 6 weeks.

It could be different for each individual person though, you may see results more quick.

Can't hurt to try and it cost about $15

Hey, thanks so much. I'm not taking that muscle relaxer anymore. I took the one bottle she prescribed and that was it. It really made me jumpy and tired. I have been taking Osteo Bi-flex for about a week now, and I have been seeing a chiropractor for about three weeks, going into a fourth week. I asked him about what to take to help last week, and he recommended both of them, the glucosamine and the magnesium/calcium supplements, saying they would work best for me together, but I kept forgetting to ask him when I went in about the zinc.

I will definitely look into the cherry juice, even though I detest cherries. If it helps, I will find a way to like it. :D I will also look into the turmeric and SAM-E. Has anyone ever tried that joint juice? If you have, did it work and does it taste good? They only have the tropical flavor around here, at least that's all I remember seeing. I don't know if there is any other flavor than that.

Thanks

Daisy

I've never heard of the joint juice...
I did hear that the Osteo Bi-flex was good though.
Is it helping you at all yet?

I don't know. I have my days that I'm fine and I have my days that I can barely walk and I'm limping every step I take.

Great News!! My chiro said that my range of motion went from 80% to 95%. Woohoo! He did a re-eval on me today and he said everything was great compared to when I first went in a month or so ago.

I bought the joint juice today to try out, but it's not cold yet. Here is the web page that tells you about it, if you want to check it out. I'll let you know if I think it's any good.

Joint Juice

In the FAQ's, they tell you what it is made of, so if you are interested, you should read that first.

Looks good. It probably does work.
Let me know...

The tropical fruit really tastes like tropical fruit, so if you like tropical fruit, you should like it. You know how some things don't taste the way the box says. This actually does. Sort of reminds me of soda. I don't like some of the things in it, like the mango and passion fruit, so I don't really like it too much. You'd really have to try it for yourself, if you're not sure whether you like the mango and passion fruit. They also have orange-tangerine, which I think I would like better. If I can find some, I'll let you know what it's like. It was $3 for four 8oz cans at walmart, in the vitamin section.