MSM
Methylsulfonylmethane ( MSM ) is a popular dietary supplement promoted for a variety of conditions including pain, inflammation, allergies, arthritis, and the maintenance of normal keratin levels in hair, skin and nails. Until recently MSM had not been studied much and most of the reports on the benefits of MSM had been anecdotal. However, there have been recent reports that MSM does have benefits, particularly in arthritis and seasonal allergic rhinitis.
MSM is found in small amounts in everyone's blood and most foods.
It's unclear what role MSM plays in the complex chemistry of the human body, but like other sulfur compounds, MSM is a necessary building block for proteins, especially those found in the hair, muscles, and connective tissue of the joints and skin. Sulfur also is found in insulin and bile acid.
MSM serves as an important source of bioavailable dietary sulfur, an element that plays a critical role in maintaining the integrity and elasticity of connective and other tissues. It is an important component of proteins found throughout the body, such as in hair, nails, skin and tendons. Additionally, MSM is able to cross the blood brain barrier.
MSM May Benefit Varied Conditions
Much of the knowledge of MSM comes from research conducted by Stanley W. Jacob, M.D., of Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland. His clinical findings suggest MSM is valuable as a treatment for a wide range of conditions.
According to Jacob, "MSM is a pain reliever, and it reduces inflammation clinically," he adds. One of the advantages of MSM is that it doesn't possess or create a pungent sulfur odor. That, Jacob says, eases the the problem with bad breath and increases the therapy's "social acceptability."
MSM (taken orally) can relieve pain and inflammation in muscles and joints. Many of the components of joints are made from collagen and glucosamine, both of which are sulfur dependent. Herschler, in one of his many patents on MSM, describes an 81-year-old arthritic women who was not helped by conventional drug therapy. After two weeks of taking MSM, she had "almost total" pain relief.
In an animal study on rheumatoid arthritis like joint degeneration, Jacob found MSM to be effective in reducing joint inflammation, and completely prevented the breakdown of cartilage. According to Jacobs, MSM can be helpful in most musculoskeletal pain and inflammation, including rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, tendonitis, and gout.
