Natural Remedies for Osteoarthritis: Joint Pain Relief

I told her about the honey and Blackstrap Molasses post I saw here as well, she's just ecstatic about the pain being gone. She is 76 and had this for about 20 years at least.

The reason for the use is to bring relief for sinus congestion and frequent sore throat.

What has happened though has taken me a bit by surprise. My increasing symptoms of Osteoarthritis have been brought under control, the pain is significantly reduced. My energy levels are increased, my sinus congestion is reduced, my sore throats ..... almost gone! The surprise though is the change to the Osteoarthritis. I suffer with this in my wrists and hands.

The mix I use is as follows: One dessert spoon of good quality honey, 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar in a glass and half filled with warm ( partly cooled boiled water ) stir until dissolved and just drink it down or sip it. It is quite palateable. I drink this in the morning.

Subsequently, the Lord has sent scores of individuals into my path who also had osteoarthritis and He had me give my testimony about this wonderful remedy and person after person has reported the same wonderful results by doing the organic broccoli. Some of those got rid of their arthritis in one or two weeks. Praise The Lord!

I'm catching up on reading Earth Clinic and your query from 2 days ago. From my experience, the biggest determiner of whether I'll wake up with joint pain is refined sugar. I don't usually eat it, but I happen to have been on a 2 day binge. This morning, I am hurting.

To calm things down, I've got a jar of bone broth thawing. It is homemade. I can't speak for the store shelf kind, but I have read the labels and don't see calcium in there (How is that possible?). A cup or 2 of bone broth over the next 3 to 4 days is what I will use to turn this around. That and no more sugar.

I make broth with roasted venison bones when I have them, but a good quality hen carcass adds a lot more collagen gel. I have never been bothered by nightshades and lately I take the easy route of using a cup of jarred pasta sauce to flavor a batch of broth. It seems to work as well as when I spend half an hour chopping vegetables. We eat from our garden and I take a walk or a paddle almost every day. I do appreciate the Mediterranean diet and always enjoy Michael's posts, but when cooking, I use the fats suggested by Dr. Terry Wahls instead.

Osteoarthritis pain is no fun. I hope you are successful in finding your answers.

Hi, I read that pineapple and strawberries help take away osteoarthritis pain and I was of course skeptical,

BUT!!!! I would say that eating these two foods every day, has eliminated at least 70% of my osteo pain! It truly is a miracle!

I eat about 4 strawberries and about 2 rings of pineapple (almost every day) and it worked in about 2 days!

Hope this helps you and/or your loved ones too!

For the past few years, I've been developing bumps on the top bony joints of both index fingers. In my research I've discovered they appear to be Heberden's Nodes – they're bony swellings that form on your hands as a result of osteoarthritis. And they make using that finger or fingers incredibly painful. Starting earlier this spring the one on my left hand was really bothering me, couldn't use it, had to be conscious of not using it for anything or the pain would shoot through me. (ever try to function without your index fingers? it's very challenging).

In the last few months, I've also been getting foot cramps in the middle of the night. Wake-up-cry-out-loud-foot/toe-twisting foot cramps. (I know, I need to drink more water too).

For foot cramps, I use magnesium oil for almost immediate relief. I also use magnesium oil on my legs for my restless legs. In an effort to be proactive in the last few weeks I've been rubbing magnesium lotion on my feet and massaging them for a few minutes each night before bed. I found this great lotion that's cocoa butter with magnesium oil. Or I use my MSM lotion and mix it with my spray mag oil. Like a lightbulb going on the other day, I realized my finger hasn't hurt me in a few weeks. Hasn't hurt AT ALL. Magnesium to the rescue....

AGAIN. I use it for so many things, I don't know how people can live without it. I hope everyone tries it, it has so many uses. I wasn't even using it on purpose for my fingers, but I got results as a side effect of trying to fix my feet. Sweet!

When I first started daily use of a tea made with ACV, it helped. I was in my early 50s then and had ended a career in hands on horticulture. I too woke up with aching hands in the night. I'm closer to 60 now and no longer drink that tea, because other things have helped more. I make bone broth to drink and to cook with. I really believe in that broth as a great help for arthritis! I strive to eat no sugar, gluten, or soy. I only eat Irish butter (higher fat content than US butter) and some goat products for dairy, but am cognizant that too much dairy can cause inflammation. I try to eat 7-9 cups of colored vegetables or berries per day. drink plenty of water, and limit alchohol. I take a B complex, magnesium, potassium, CoQ10, and an eye vitamin each day. I seem to be getting the needed minerals by using pink salt. If I wake up at night, my palms do feel a bit knotted, but I continue to work with my hands each day and am, basically, pain free.

For me, there was no single supplement that did the trick; just the overhaul of my diet. When people on this site speak of Alkalizing the body for health, this is what they mean.

Initially I went with cold gel pack followed by heating pad and 7 exercises given by a physical therapist. When that was not getting it done I got on the web and a naturopathic Doc, that I like, was recommending an essential fatty acid called cetyl myristoleate. Albino rats don't get arthritis and it's because they have this EFA (Essential Fatty Acid) in their systems. This was discovered by a Dr. Diehl in the 1960's. He worked for the NIH so he had the resources to find a way to produce this rare supplement and it has been offered on the market since 1991.

When I started it, I was in a bad way and feeling some hopelessness. It took approximately one month for me to get pain free. This is a typical time period. I use the product produced by a company owned by Dr Diehl's current family and this formulation is more expensive, but I believe it is the one that gives results. I'm currently doing a second month for good measure. They claim relief can last 2-3 years at which time you repeat. There are zero side effects but you must follow directions to use on an empty stomach and not close to caffeine. This was my salvation from disability!

Based on this new study (January, 2026) Melatonin appears to work against osteoarthritis by inhibiting multiple mechanisms of osteoarthritis as discussed here :

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41562301/

Here are two relevant quotes from the study :

' The proliferation, DNA replication, and expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and c-Myc of FLSs were inhibited by MT intervention. MT arrested the cell cycle by inhibiting the expression of cyclin D1 and cyclin E1, induced apoptosis via down-regulating B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) and up-regulating Bcl-2 associated X (Bax), and suppressed the migration by impairing vimentin expression in FLSs. '

' Moreover, MT ameliorated synovial hyperplasia, inflammation, fibrosis, and pathological changes in synovial fluid, as well as the destruction of cartilage and bone in the OA rabbit model. Our findings indicate that MT alleviates synovial pathological changes and delays OA progression, which is related to its ability to suppress aberrant FLS functions. '

This study adds further confirmation that melatonin lotion helps relieve osteoarthritis. Here is a link to how to make melatonin lotion and the multiple health issues it has shown benefit for :

https://www.earthclinic.com/supplements/melatonin-lotion.html

Art

I have found this formula to be helpful with pain and arthritis in my hands.

Hungary water (sometimes called "the Queen of Hungary's Water", Eau de la Reine de Hongary, or "spirits of rosemary") was one of the first alcohol-based perfumes/liniment/elixir in Europe, primarily made with rosemary. The oldest surviving recipes call for distilling fresh rosemary and thyme with brandy (vodka modern way), while later formulations contain wine, lavender, mint, sage, marjoram, costus (true ginger), orange blossom and lemon.

According to legend, it was formulated at the command of the Queen Elizabeth of Hungary, sometimes identified as Queen Isabella of Hungary or in one document "Saint Elisabeth, Queen of Hungary". Some sources say that a hermit, witch or monk-recluse first gave it to the Queen of Hungary, though most likely it was made by a monk-alchemist or a band of roaming gypsies. The water was given to the queen in order to help her headaches, and is a cure for rheumatism or gout which the queen suffered in her old age or as a rejuvenation treatment. These legends mostly date to the early to mid-17th century, so the details may have become confused in the intervening centuries.

Ingredients: (Original Recipe from 1370 A.D.)

• 4 tablespoon rosemary
• 4 tablespoon thyme
• Vodka (750ml – 80 proof) to cover

Method:

1. Pour all the herbs into a one quart widemouthed glass mason jar

2. Add vodka to jar; close the jar tight and let it sit in a warm spot for 6 weeks or longer shaking occasionally (Hippocrates states both herbs must be steeped for a minimal of 6 weeks)

3. Strain out the herbs with a fine mesh – try and get all the bits out

4. Re-bottle the mixture and store in a cool, dry place

How to use:

I put this mixture into a spray bottle and spray topically on my hands at nite before bed. You will see a huge difference in your hands if repeated daily. The early recipes advise the user to also drink the tonic (though I would definitely say that you check with your doctor on that first! ).

For those who can not tolerate oral borax or are otherwise opposed to oral borax, Borax Lotion can act as an effective substitute applied topically. Here is a link to how to make it:

https://www.earthclinic.com/cures/art-solbrig-topical-arthritis-lotion.html

Btw, I recently found out that this also works for other arthritic areas of the body as mentioned by a friend of mine who was testing it on her arthritic knees and wrists which were painfully swollen, so it is not limited to just the hands!

Art

1. Steep the tea for 10min (up to 15min if you want to completely relax - no driving afterwards! )

2. Cool by stirring in 1/8c room temp filtered water, then stir in the honey & cinnamon.

3. Keep stirring while sipping... the cinnamon will not disolve.

*Drink 1st thing in the morning w/water, then do the tea in the p.m. (early - mid afternoon is best so the sweet honey will not activate Cortisol during the night! )

This has given me much relief - and stopped the severity w/in minutes... though, it did take several months before completely stopping the pain.

This was in part of a report compiled by Jill Knight, naturalist, PP-OTD, OTR/L, Asst. Professor at Harding University (Occupational Therapist - Preparatory Program). Also note: Weekly World News, Canada (17 January, 1995 issue) gave a list of 9 diseases that can be cured by honey + cinnamon, as researched by western scientists; used also by Doctors in Japan & India.

I have read about the use of ginger to ease Osteoarthritis. I have also used Apple Cider Vinegar as an additive with honey to relieve sore throat, sinus symptoms etc.

I must report though that you need to be really careful with the amount of ACV you use. One of the ingredients is Potassium Metabisulphate. Too much of this can have bad effects on different parts of the body. I started to get quite serious difficulty in passing urine. My thought process went into rewind to find a reason why I suddenly found it so difficult to pass urine and using a catheter was very painful during insertion when the tip of the tube got to the point where the prostate is.

I did some research about Potassium Metabisulphate and discovered that one of the side effects over too much in the body can cause swelling of certain parts of the body.....fingers, toes, extremities, but also the prostate. What was happening is that my prostate was swelling up and pinching the urethra and stopping urine flow. I stopped using ACV and within 3 to 4 days the symptoms disappeared.

I then read about ginger and results to ease Osteoarthritis. So I followed quantity recommendations and used fresh ginger root every other day. However the symptoms experienced with too much ACV returned. I checked the suggested quantity amount, but I also checked what components make up ginger. I was surprised to see that ginger is very high in Potassium. So I stopped this too and my symptoms disappeared.

Another vegetable that does similar things is Asparagus, be careful with this one too.

The moral here is to be very careful with things that are high in Potassium. Too much of it can actually be very dangerous.