Can the Supplement MSM Help You With Your Back Pain and Inflammation?

For people suffering from back pain, there are a number of supplements and pharmaceutical aids that they can take to reduce pain or inflammation. While the usual staples like aspirin, ibuprofen, and Vitamin C are all well-known in reducing inflammation and building up the body's connective tissues and immune response, one supplement that has not received as much attention in helping people suffering from chronic pain is MSM. This supplement may help back pain sufferers move better, withstand more stress to their joints, begin an exercise program again, or simply help them move and sit freely again.

MSM stands for methyl sulfonylmethane and is present in small amounts in fruits and vegetables. It can be found in milk, onions, lettuce, other green vegetables, and other plants. But when we use plants for cooking and heat them, the MSM can be destroyed. Processing foods can also destroy the valuable substance, and with the prevalence of processed foods in the average American diet, it is no wonder that so many people have deficient levels of MSM in their bodies. And this suboptimal level of the compound can lead to chronic pain and inflammatory syndromes.

In fact, MSM can help to block the pain response in the nervous system. It is effective as an anti-inflammatory as well as an analgesic. One of the ways it does this is by binding to the fluid in swollen tissues. It then helps to remove the fluid and swelling, thereby decreasing the body's inflammatory response. It can block the production of compounds known as fibroblasts that cause swelling. Finally, the MSM compound increases the functioning of cortisol. Cortisol is a hormone that acts in the body to decrease inflammation. All of these roles that MSM plays can reduce pain in the back and other joints, as well as improve nervous system functioning.

One of the conditions that may lead to back pain is arthritis in the joints and connective tissues of the spine. In fact, arthritis is the most common chronic pain condition found in people in the United States, and more than forty million people in the nation suffer from some type of arthritis. While there has not been a lot of research done specifically on MSM and arthritis or degenerative back conditions, there is a lot of anecdotal evidence supporting the fact that the compound in appropriate amounts reduces pain and inflammation. The danger seems to be taking too little of the substance instead of too much.

Another compound that people take to reduce joint pain and regain movement is glucosamine. The addition of MSM to glucosamine can help the two substances work together to reduce pain and swelling in areas of the body. Even a small amount of the two compounds was found in one study to reduce inflammation and help the participants' joint functioning and rehabilitation. Further, these results were found with no major side effects from taking MSM, glucosamine, or the two together. Taking higher amounts of 4-6 grams per day may have even better results for people who have been cleared by their doctors to take the supplement, although a prescription for MSM is not required.