In a well-controlled study, researchers who studied the effects of the supplement glucosamine on mild to moderately painful knee joints found no difference when they compared MRIs.
As MedPage reports, the University of Arizona researchers study found no difference in cartilage deterioration or bone-marrow lesions between the group who received the supplement and the group who received a placebo. The study, reported online in Arthritis & Rheumatology, was double-blind: Neither doctors nor patients knew which pill they were receiving.
The product has an enormous market; one in 10 U.S. adults takes it, MedPage reported, and worldwide sales were $2 billion in 2010.