Stiff, swollen, inflamed joints are common ailments as we age. They’re also the hallmarks of osteoarthritis (OA), the most widespread joint disease.

Inflammation May Cause Osteoarthritis

Research finds that inflammation might be a cause of OA rather than a mere symptom.

OA is characterized by a breakdown of cartilage, particularly in the knees, hips, fingers, neck, and spine. Stanford University professor William Robinson, MD, PhD, says OA has long been viewed “as a matter of simple wear and tear, like the tires gradually wearing out a car.”

His research shows that chronic, low-grade inflammation of the joints is a significant factor in the development of OA. Targeting the underlying inflammation that occurs well before OA symptoms appear might be enough to prevent the condition from developing.

Cartilage Building Supplements

Reduce Inflammation with Glucosamine and Chondroitin

Dietary supplements such as glucosamine and chondroitin continue to be studied for their potential to support joint health and ease osteoarthritis (OA) symptoms. Recent reviews suggest these supplements can provide benefits. 

One large 2025 systematic review of 146 human studies found that most research reports positive outcomes for glucosamine and chondroitin in managing OA pain and joint discomfort, with a favorable safety profile and minimal adverse effects compared with placebo or standard treatments. 

Other analyses also suggest that these supplements may be more effective when combined with other therapies or nutrients. A 2024–2025 meta‑analysis found that glucosamine paired with anti‑inflammatory agents such as omega‑3 fatty acids or with ibuprofen significantly reduced knee OA pain compared with placebo, and combinations including chondroitin and methylsulfonylmethane also showed pain reduction benefits. 

However, results across studies still vary depending on factors like supplement formulation, OA severity, and study design, and not all combinations show strong efficacy in every outcome. 

Chondroitin Sulfate and Hyaluronic Acid Help Lubricate the Joints

Research indicates that chondroitin sulfate and hyaluronic acid can improve joint pain and mobility in people with OA. These compounds, along with glucosamine, are naturally produced by the body and are key components of cartilage and synovial fluid, which help lubricate and cushion the joints. They are widely available in capsules, tablets, powders, and liquids and are often taken together for added benefit.

According to Jorg Jerosch, MD, a review of these “chondoprotective” compounds supports their use in patients with OA. He notes that their effectiveness may be enhanced when combined with anti-inflammatory and joint-supportive nutrients, including omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidant vitamins A, C, and E, and trace minerals such as selenium, zinc, and copper.

Herbal and Nutritional Inflammation Fighters

Here are some other supplements that have been studied extensively for relief of joint pain.

• Fish oil is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which fight inflammation and are essential for many functions of the body and brain.
• Gamma linolenic acid (GLA) is an omega-6 fatty acid, found in the oils of some plant seeds, including evening primrose, borage, and black currant. The body converts it into inflammation-fighting compounds.
• Natural eggshell membrane (NEM) has been shown to relieve pain and stiffness in joints and connective tissues, with some studies reporting rapid improvement within seven days and ongoing benefits.
• The spice turmeric and its chemical component curcumin have been shown to protect joints from inflammation and damage.
• Herbs such as boswellia (also known as frankincense), ginger, and green tea extracts show promise in reducing inflammation in the joints.
• Andrographis, devil’s claw, and white willow bark are other botanicals that some users find effective for joint pain.
• For topical relief, consider gels or creams that contain capsaicin, the fiery extract of cayenne peppers, or homeopathic products.

Use Care When Using Supplements with Medications

Keep in mind that herbal supplements may cause side effects when they interact with prescription medications. Glucosamine, for example, can affect clotting agents. Herbs may also interact with medications that are prescribed before and after surgery. Be sure to discuss your use of supplements with your healthcare provider, especially prior to surgery.

And if you’re allergic to shellfish, be aware that supplemental glucosamine is usually extracted from crabs, shrimp, or lobsters. Ask your natural products retailer about plant-sourced glucosamine.

The pharmacotherapeutic agents known as glucagon-like peptide receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs or GLP-1s) have been in clinical use for about 20 years, but they’ve experienced a surge in popularity recently with the advent of newer formulations for weight management.

Commonly known by brand names such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Trulicity, Rybelsus, and Bydureon, these GLP-1 receptor agonists are prescribed primarily to help manage Type 2 diabetes and obesity. Research shows that GLP-1s can also improve blood pressure, cholesterol levels, and fatty liver disease, while reducing the risks of heart and kidney disease.

Some newer GLP-1 versions are designed specifically for weight loss. They work by mimicking a natural hormone made in your gut after you eat, which helps control blood sugar and makes you feel full sooner. They also interact with parts of the brain that regulate appetite and cravings.

Healthy Choices Can Help

If you’re taking a GLP-1 medication for weight loss and to improve metabolic health, it’s important to be aware of how these drugs can affect the quality and adequacy of macronutrient and micronutrient intake.

Those on GLP-1 medications have slower digestion, so they feel fuller for longer—even after consuming small portions. If a heavy or large meal is consumed, feelings of discomfort may occur, as can changes in appetite, taste, and digestion. For some on GLP-1s, food cravings no longer exist, and eating small portions is enough to feel satiated.

Some people experience constipation and nausea on these medications. Others report indigestion, diarrhea, vomiting, and delayed gastric emptying. These side effects can affect the variety of food consumed as well as the nutrients absorbed.

How to Eat for Fewer Side Effects on GLP-1s

• Try eating a morning meal to help prevent an upset stomach. Include simple carbohydrates like toast or crackers.
• If constipation is an issue, stay hydrated and include fiber with meals.
• Don’t skip meals, even if the thought of eating is unappealing. Try food with more neutral flavors like a simple soup or a turkey sandwich. A protein smoothie is another good option.
• If you find yourself experiencing an aversion towards meat consumption, which can be common on GLP-1s, try other protein-rich sources such as beans, tofu, eggs, or dairy.
• Enjoy smaller-sized nutritious meals.
• Be aware that fatty foods may cause nausea.
• Drink enough water to stay properly hydrated.

Food Choices on GLP-1 Medications

These guidelines will help maintain muscle mass, nutrient intake, and digestive comfort.

• Lean protein: about 30 grams (roughly 4-5 ounces of chicken, fish, tofu, eggs, or Greek yogurt)
• Vegetables and fruits: at least 1 cup total, focusing on colorful, high-fiber options
• Smart carbohydrates: ¹⁄₂ to 1 cup of whole grains, beans, or starchy vegetables (like sweet potatoes)
• Healthy fats: small amounts for flavor and satiety, such as 1 teaspoon of butter or oil or a sprinkle of cheese or nuts.  

Protect Your Muscle While on GLP-1s

When taking GLP-1 medications, try not to fixate on restriction or eating perfectly. Make sure your choices keep you feeling full and energized.

You may want to consider dietary counseling by trained nutrition specialists to identify, correct, and manage nutritional issues.

It’s important to note that recent studies show up to 20 to 50 percent of the weight loss on GLP-1 medications can come from lean body mass, including muscle. Eating enough protein and doing regular strength or resistance exercises can help preserve muscle and keep your metabolism strong.

Top Supplements for People on GLP-1s

Since one’s appetite becomes suppressed on GLP-1 medications, getting enough nutrients is important to maintain muscles, energy, and a healthy gut.

In a large observational analysis of over 461,000 adults newly starting GLP-1 medications with no prior nutritional issues, about 22 percent developed nutritional deficiencies within one year. Vitamin D was the most common nutritional deficiency.

Researchers suggest monitoring for nutritional risks, including vitamin B12 deficiency when on GLP-1 medications. Reductions in levels of iron have also been reported. Future research is required to provide clear guidelines on monitoring and managing nutritional support for patients, but in the meantime, nutritional supplementation may help.

To help fill potential nutrient gaps from smaller meals, look for products scientifically formulated to support adults on GLP-1 medications. Available as sugar-free gummies, liquid drops, or capsules, many include vitamins B12 and D3, as well as minerals like calcium and magnesium to help support heart, nerve, bone, and tooth health.

If your diet is low in protein, a multivitamin that includes vitamin B12—and iron, if recommended by your healthcare practitioner—can help fill potential nutrient gaps. Because constipation can be a side effect of GLP-1 drugs, consider supplementing with fiber such as psyllium. Staying hydrated is important when you increase fiber intake.

Insomnia is a bit of a mystery. Sometimes it’s caused because of an exciting or depressing event. At other times, sleeplessness may be a side effect of a drug you’re taking or caused by caffeine or some other type of stimulant.

Caffeine lurks in certain sodas, aspirin compounds, decongestants, and pain relievers. Sometimes, however, insomnia’s cause is inexplicable.

Problems with Pharmaceuticals

Conventional drugs for insomnia may help you fall asleep, but ultimately lead you to awaken unrefreshed. To make things worse, these drugs can be addictive and often make it more difficult to fall asleep without them. Worse still, some of the most popular pharmaceuticals for insomnia can even cause a person to eat or drive a car with no memory of these actions.

Homeopathic medicines offer a safer alternative, though insomnia is usually best understood and treated as one symptom of an overall body/mind syndrome that requires “constitutional care.”

Homeopathic Medicines to Consider

The most effective way to use homeopathic medicines is to find the one remedy that matches the syndrome of symptoms being experienced. While chronic or severe insomnia may require a professional homeopath, there are some simple homeopathic medicines to consider for at least short-term benefit.

One of the most common homeopathic medicines for insomnia is Coffea cruda, which is a homeopathic dose of coffee. Coffea is indicated when a person feels mentally and physically overactive (these are the symptoms that nonhomeopathic ingestion of coffee is well known to cause). 

This remedy is also known to relieve insomnia in people who are anticipating something exciting that will be occurring in the near future and in people who have a constant flow of ideas that keep them awake. This homeopathic medicine is also useful for people who have taken a caffeinated product.

Other homeopathic medicines to consider include:

• Ignatia (St. Ignatius bean): People with insomnia who have suffered from a recent grieving experience often benefit from this remedy. People who need this medicine tend to sigh or yawn frequently.
• Nux vomica (poison nut): This remedy is indicated when insomnia results from consumption of alcohol, coffee, or drugs (therapeutic or recreational). Nux vomica is also useful for insomnia as a result of mental strain or excessive study. People who benefit from this medicine tend to be very irritable and wake up from the slightest noise. They may have difficulty falling asleep due to minor distractions.
• Arsenicum album (arsenic): People with insomnia who suffer from various anxieties and fears often benefit from Arsenicum album. Typically, such people are very anxious and restless, usually needing to get out of bed to walk around. They feel too tired and anxious to go to sleep.
• Gelsemium (yellow jessamine): People who feel anticipatory anxiety about an upcoming event tend to benefit from this remedy. These people tend to develop a dull and fatigued mind, making thinking an effort.
• Kali phosphoricum adresses symptoms associated with mental fatigue such as difficulty concentrating, headaches, and occasional sleeplessness.
• Passiflora incarnata relieves occasional sleeplessness.
• Valerian officinalis targets sleeplessness with hypersensitivity to stress.
• Passiflora (passion flower): This medicine has a long history of success in homeopathy and herbalism. If no other homeopathic remedy is obviously indicated, try this one. It’s most effective in lower potencies, such as 3X.

DOSE: Use the 6, 12, or 30th potency every 30 minutes for up to three doses. Consider another remedy if sleep does not occur. If insomnia is a chronic problem, seek professional homeopathic care.

Like a road map, your body has central arteries, secondary routes, and narrow, winding backroads. At the center of it all lies your heart, the capital city that pumps 2,000 gallons of lifeblood via electrical impulses and muscular contraction of approximately 100,000 heartbeats per day. 

No organ symbolizes life and humanity as exquisitely as this fist-sized muscle, and fortunately there’s much you can do to keep it functioning well.

Commonsense Approaches to Heart Health

First and foremost, a healthy diet, regular exercise, avoidance of toxic chemicals, stress management, and adequate sleep form the backbone of a heart-healthy routine. 

When it comes to diet, choose vegetables and some berries and fruit (ideally five to 10 servings per day), high-fiber legumes, nuts, seeds, and whole grains, cooked mushrooms, cold-water wild-caught fatty fish, and healthy fats from olive oil and avocados. Antioxidant-rich dark chocolate/cacao, green tea, and red wine/dark purple grape juice can be enjoyed in moderation.

Our best heart-tonic remedies easily cross the food-supplement divide.

Hawthorn Berries, Leaf & Flower

Hawthorn (Crataegus spp.) earned its reputation for heart health over thousands of years of traditional use alongside impressive modern clinical studies.

It offers not one but many beneficial actions for the heart and blood vessels. Hawthorn decreases oxidative damage and inflammation, normalizes and reduces blood pressure, modestly reduces cholesterol, dilates blood vessels, improves oxygen utilization, strengthens the structure and function of the heart, reduces blood stickiness (also known as platelet aggregation), protects against injury and helps with healing from cardiovascular events, improves heart rhythm, reduces chest pain and angina, strengthens the heart in congestive heart failure, and helps maintain smooth blood vessel lining.

Herbalists also use hawthorn flowers to open the heart’s emotions and heal from grief and a broken heart. Hawthorn blends well with rose blossoms, holy basil, lemon balm, and/or motherwort.

Double-check for herb-drug interactions. Notably, hawthorn may increase the hypotensive effects of ACE-inhibitor blood pressure medications like lisinopril. 

Besides that, hawthorn is very safe and well tolerated but takes steady doses for a month or longer for the effects to kick in. Consider it a long-term addition to your routine if you have heart disease or fear a family history of it. Solid extracts, standardized capsules, and formulas that combine all three parts are your best bets for potency.

Hibiscus Tea

This cranberry-like sour tea comes from the flower calyx of Hibiscus sabdariffa; it’s popularly consumed in Mexico and the Caribbean as “rosa de jamaica” and roselle and is frequently added to fruity and zinger commercial tea blends.

Several human studies have shown that hibiscus is one of our most effective yet safe herbal options for hypertension. It rivals popular hypertension medications captopril, lisinopril, and hydrochlorothiazide with good tolerability and without potassium loss in human studies.

Hibiscus also reduces bad cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood sugar. The dose is much higher than your typical cup of tea. Aim for 10 to 20 grams of dried hibiscus per day (spread out over one liter or several cups of tea), steeped for 30 minutes.

Though safe and food-like, it may alter and speed the clearance of some medications. Fruit acids in hibiscus tea can be corrosive to tooth enamel over time, so consider brushing your teeth or at least rinsing after you sip. 

Feel free to blend hibiscus with rooibos, another red-hued tea that has performed well in cardiovascular health studies, as well as hawthorn.

Garlic

Even though the “stinking rose” does not drop cholesterol and blood pressure numbers dramatically, it’s still a worthy daily heart tonic. 

Garlic has various beneficial actions for the heart and blood vessels. Alongside modest cholesterol and blood pressure reduction, garlic helps make the blood less sticky and thick (reduced platelet aggregation, atherosclerosis, inflammation, and fibrin). 

Garlic is a blood thinner and should not be combined with blood-thinning medications. Use it in food (chop and let sit 10 minutes) or pills. If you find garlic odor offensive or get digestive upset, try aged garlic extract.

Other heart remedies include omega-3 fatty acids (especially from fish oil and cold water fatty fish), high-polyphenol cacao, turmeric, and food doses of rosemary. Whether you take them as supplements or eat them regularly, they’re easy to include in your heart-healthy daily routine.