This isn't the way medical science is supposed to work. A remedy used to treat creaky bones in horses and dogs works so well that humans start taking it. It gets hyped in a best-selling book on arthritis and the number of users skyrockets.
Doctors get glowing testimonials from patients, so they tell other patients to try it.
That's what happened with glucosamine and chondroitin, which taken together or separately are now America's top-selling joint supplements. The early results of research, including one study just published and another due out soon, suggest the treatment actually does ease joint pain and may even forestall further cartilage damage. The science isn't black or white. We're building a case trying to figure out if this works or not, and at the moment the evidence is favoring these products. Dr. Roland Moskowitz, a professor at Case Western Reserve University who next week will help initiate the biggest Study ever of glucosamine and chondroitin for the National Institutes of Health, also is bemused by the treatment's unconventional history.