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Relief for Arthritis Pain: As Easy as 1 2 3

by Dr. Julian Whitaker

Published 04/30/09

Since the time of the ancient Greeks, sulfur-rich mineral hot springs have been utilized for their therapeutic properties. The Baths of Agamemnon in Turkey still retain the name of the Greek military leader who brought his wounded soldiers there to recuperate. Mozart and Beethoven frequented a sulfur spring at Baden, near Vienna. And in this century, Hot Springs, Montana, has attracted countless visitors seeking relief from arthritis and other conditions in its "Big Medicine" waters.

The healing effects of sulfur have been recognized for thousands of years, but it is only in this century that this mineral's critical role in the body has been clarified. Sulfur is a major ingredient of several amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, which are the structural material for muscles, bones, cartilage, connective tissue, and other tissues of the body. It is also a component of the B vitamins that are essential for energy production. In addition, another role has recently emerged: sulfur is also a natural pain reliever.

#1: MSM Reduces Pain and Inflammation

You can get sulfur from food, but it isn't easy. Storage, processing, and cooking deplete stores of this mineral. And some of the foods richest in sulfur-containing amino acids, such as meat, eggs, and dairy, are poor nutritional choices for other reasons. So what's a body to do? Look to one of Mother Nature's best sources of sulfur: methylsulfonylmethane, or MSM.

According to Stanley Jacob, MD, the co-discoverer of MSM and the first physician to use this natural substance to treat patients, MSM offers a natural way to reduce pain and inflammation without serious side effects. It is especially useful for chronic pain conditions, including arthritis, back pain, headaches, muscle pain, fibromyalgia, tendinitis, bursitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, and TMJ.

Acute pain and chronic pain are quite different phenomena. Acute pain (as when you put your finger on a hot stove) is transmitted at a lightning-quick rate to the brain along myelinated alpha-delta nerves; once the message reaches the brain, the sensory nervous system kicks in to move you rapidly away from the source of pain. Chronic pain messages travel by a different route, along non-myelinated nerve fibers called C fibers. MSM is most effective in blocking pain impulses that travel along the C fibers. This results in relief of the deep aching pain characteristic of arthritis and other chronic conditions.

MSM also relieves inflammation, which reduces pressure on nerves and alleviates pain and muscle spasm, a common and painful consequence of injury. If this were all MSM did, it would be enough to rank it highly. But MSM goes beyond mere pain relief to actually support healing. It increases blood flow, delivering needed nutrients to injured tissues. It also alters the cross-linkage of collagen, reducing painful scar tissue and improving range of motion.

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