One-two-three punch for joint pain: create a powerful pain relief cocktail by combining Celadrin with glucosamine and chondroitin.(SUPPLEMENTS: SYNERGY)

Mike Danielson's first thought was to save his daughter, as his 5-year-old started to slip out of a chair lift during a family skiing vacation. Sitting next to her, he quickly contorted his upper body while reaching around a pole and managed to pull her back to safety. Although it wasn't apparent at the time, averting one injury caused another.

During the next few days, Danielson thought he had pulled a neck muscle but continued to enjoy the winter slopes. Soon afterwards, excruciating pain drove him to seek medical help. Muscle relaxants weren't very effective and severely upset his stomach, and debilitating pain radiated down his left arm.

An MRI eventually revealed a raptured vertebra in Danielson's spine, a piece of bone lodged near a nerve root, and arthritis in his neck. Danielson declined surgery and instead chose an intensive regimen of physical therapy and supplements, including glucosamine and Celadrin. Working hard paid off. Before the summer began, he had resumed an active lifestyle that included cycling and golf.

When we think of joints, we tend to think of knees and elbows more than spinal vertebrae. Nevertheless, they're all joints and can respond to the same types of remedies. Three of these, glucosamine, chondroitin and Celadrin, may work synergistically to repair joint function and relieve pain.

How They Work

Glucosamine and chondroitin have been studied extensively, individually and in combination, for treatment of osteoarthritis. The most comprehensive study to date, supported by the National Institutes of Health and published in the New England Journal of Medicine last February, found that these two supplements together may relieve pain better than either one alone. The two remedies complement each other, according to Jason Theodosakis, MD, who first popularized this combination in 1997 with his first book, The Arthritis Cure, and was a member of the trial's steering committee.

A proprietary form of fatty acids, Celadrin has been studied in two forms, pills and a topical cream. Both can be used simultaneously. The use of glucosamine and chondroitin with Celadrin has not been ...