Is consuming cartilage beneficial for joint health?

Is Eating Cartilage Good for Your Joints?

There is no scientific evidence supporting that consuming cartilage or cartilage-derived supplements provides significant benefits for joint health. In fact, major clinical guidelines strongly recommend against the use of most cartilage-derived supplements for osteoarthritis management.

Scientific Evidence on Cartilage Consumption and Joint Health

Glucosamine and Chondroitin (Common Cartilage-Derived Supplements)

• The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) strongly recommends against using glucosamine for knee, hip, and hand osteoarthritis due to lack of efficacy in unbiased studies 1
• The ACR also strongly recommends against using chondroitin sulfate for knee and hip osteoarthritis 1
• For hand osteoarthritis, chondroitin sulfate is only conditionally recommended, with limited evidence of benefit 1
• Discrepancies between industry-sponsored and publicly funded studies have raised serious concerns about publication bias in glucosamine research 1
• The highest quality, least biased studies fail to show important benefits of glucosamine over placebo 1

Why People Still Use These Supplements

• Despite lack of evidence, glucosamine remains among the most commonly used dietary supplements in the US 1
• Many patients perceive that glucosamine is efficacious or that different formulations have varying degrees of effectiveness 1
• The potential toxicity of glucosamine is generally low, though some patients may show elevations in blood glucose levels 1

Limited Evidence for Chondroitin in Hand OA

• A single trial suggested potential analgesic efficacy of chondroitin sulfate in hand osteoarthritis, without evidence of harm 1
• However, in a 3-year placebo-controlled randomized controlled trial, chondroitin sulfate was no more beneficial than placebo for hand osteoarthritis 1
• Chondroitin polysulphate showed more effectiveness than placebo in preventing radiographic changes of erosive osteoarthritis in one study 1

What Actually Works for Joint Health

Evidence-Based Approaches for Joint Health

• Weight loss for overweight and obese patients has been shown to benefit pain and function in knee osteoarthritis 1
• NSAIDs and acetaminophen have demonstrated improved pain and function in osteoarthritis patients 1
• Intra-articular corticosteroid injections have substantial evidence supporting their use for short-term relief 1
• Exercise combining diet and physical activity is preferred for achieving weight loss that benefits joint health 1

Role of Gut Microbiota in Joint Health

• Emerging research suggests a connection between gut microbiota and osteoarthritis management 1
• Several studies have shown that probiotics like Lactobacillus casei may help reduce pain scores and inflammatory markers in osteoarthritis patients 1
• Co-administration of probiotics with other supplements has shown synergistic effects in animal models 1

Conclusion on Cartilage Consumption

• Despite the theoretical connection between consuming cartilage and supporting joint health, scientific evidence does not support this approach 1
• The European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) notes that while some Symptomatic Slow Acting Drugs for Osteoarthritis (SYSADOAs) like glucosamine and chondroitin may give symptomatic benefit with low toxicity, effect sizes are small and clinically relevant structure modification benefits have not been established 1
• For those seeking joint health improvement, evidence-based approaches like weight management, appropriate exercise, and medically supervised interventions are recommended instead of cartilage consumption 1