trying to come up with anti inflammatory protocol with few if any side effects for osteoarthritis

I'm pleased to see that the Arthritis Foundation has a section on alternative or complementary treatments.  I've only listed the supplements here but they do suggest meditation and acupuncture among other forms of treatment.  Times are changing

I'm interested in coming up with a plan for what is apparently osteoarthritis whether it's caused by chronic lyme or just wear on my aging joints.  I'm already taking cats claw and Japanese knotweed for a flare up recently.  I ended up getting some knee X-rays just to see what was what and the doctor said nothing but 'normal' wear and of course prescribed a heavy duty NSAID, stronger with more possible side effects than over the counter ones.  I've taken it for a couple days but reading more of the side effects has me wanting to find a clearer more gentle protocol.

Here''s the list of the site's suggestions for osteoarthritis in particular.  

anyone with experience using any of these?  We use fresh ginger frequently and I could up my use...and turmeric but only the powder not fresh or as a supplement.


Boswellia Serrate (Indian frankincense)
How it works: The active components (Boswellic acids) have anti-inflammatory and analgesic (pain-relieving) properties. It also may help prevent cartilage loss and inhibit the autoimmune process. In a 2008 study, the extract, also known as Loxin 5, significantly improved OA pain and function within seven days. An Indian study also revealed it slowed cartilage damage after three months of use.
Best for: osteoarthritis

SAM-e (S-adenosylmethionine)
How it works: SAM-e acts as an analgesic (pain reliever) and has anti-inflammatory properties. It may stimulate cartilage growth and also affects neurotransmitters, such as serotonin, which reduce pain perception. Two studies have shown that it relieves OA symptoms as effectively as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) with fewer side effects and more prolonged benefit.
Best for: osteoarthritis
Also used for: fibromyalgia


Turmeric/Curcumin (Curcuma longa)
How it works: Curcumin is the chemical in turmeric that can reduce joint pain and swelling by blocking inflammatory cytokines and enzymes. A 2010 clinical trial using a turmeric supplement showed long-term improvement in pain and function in patients with knee OA. A small 2012 study using a curcumin product, BCM-95, showed more reduced joint pain and swelling in patients with active RA when compared to diclofenac sodium.
Best for: osteoarthritis

Avocado-soybean Unsaponifiables (ASU)
How it works: ASU blocks pro-inflammatory chemicals, prevents deterioration of synovial cells, which line joints, and may help regenerate normal connective tissue. A large three-year study published in 2013 showed that ASU significantly reduced progression of hip OA compared with placebo. A 2008 meta-analysis found that ASU improved symptoms of hip and knee OA, and reduced or eliminated NSAID use.
Best for: osteoarthritis


Cat’s Claw (Uncaria tomentosa)
How it works: Cat’s claw is an anti-inflammatory that inhibits tumor necrosis factor (TNF), a target of powerful RA drugs. It also contains compounds that may benefit the immune system. A small 2002 trial showed it reduced joint pain and swelling by more than 50 percent compared with placebo. Look for a brand that is free of tetra-cyclic oxindole alkaloids.
Best for: rheumatoid arthritis


Ginger (Zingiber officinale)
How it works: Ginger has been shown to have anti-inflammatory properties similar to ibuprofen and COX-2 inhibitors. In a 2012 study, a specialized ginger extract reduced inflammatory reactions in RA as effectively as steroids did. Earlier studies showed that taking a certain extract four times daily reduced osteoarthritis pain in the knee after three months of treatment, and another taken twice daily worked about as well as ibuprofen taken three times daily for hip and knee OA pain.
Best for: rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis


CBD (Cannabidiol)
How it works: Cannabinoids are thought to influence the body’s own endocannabinoid system, which regulate biological functions such as metabolism, pain sensation and nervous system functions. Animal studies show CBD reduces pain and inflammation, and it may ease anxiety and improve sleep, but human research is needed. One study found synthetic-derived CBD was effective for knee OA pain. The FDA has approved CBD-derived drugs for rare childhood epileptic conditions.
Best for: Nerve pain
Also used for: Fibromyalgia, OA, RA

I'm working on some arthritis or arthritis-like issues at the moment and trying to avoid NSAIDs, too, so this is very welcome. I was prescribed diclofenac, but it sounded pretty nasty to me.

no experience to add that you don't already have, I'm afraid. I've made spicy tea with fresh turmeric, ginger, and black pepper quite a bit but never noticed any relief from it. tastes great, though. I ordered a pre-mixed version with dry ingredients that probably won't be quite as tasty or colorful. it will be much easier to prepare, though, so having it several times daily will be more feasible than using fresh ingredients.

I'm a fan of CBD. Better feel-goods than "the herb" and none of the negatives (legalities, lethargy, paranoia, etc.)  But I have found the industry to be so full of gimmicks that it's hard to suss out what "the good stuff" is. I avoid the alcohol based extracts because those you usually have to mix and drink, which is less effective than oil extracts you hold under the tongue for maximum effect. Only buy from a place where you can look up the Certificate of Analysis, prepared by an outside lab. I like the most potent milligram to ounce ratio so I don't have to use a lot. My current source is from "Liberty Brand Hemp." Once ounce for $170 seems spendy, but at 6000mg in that ounce it's the most bang for your buck I could find.

tel jetson wrote:I'm working on some arthritis or arthritis-like issues at the moment and trying to avoid NSAIDs, too, so this is very welcome. I was prescribed diclofenac, but it sounded pretty nasty to me.

That's the one! the more I read about it the more I decided I would rather hurt...my GP understood that I didn't want to take anything like that long term if at all and that I would prefer a diet/herb/supplement solution, still, not surprisingly, he prescribed by the book.  
So that bottle is back on the shelf and I'm determined to figure out an alternative.

Matt Todd wrote:I'm a fan of CBD. Better feel-goods than "the herb" and none of the negatives (legalities, lethargy, paranoia, etc.)  But I have found the industry to be so full of gimmicks that it's hard to suss out what "the good stuff" is. I avoid the alcohol based extracts because those you usually have to mix and drink, which is less effective than oil extracts you hold under the tongue for maximum effect. Only buy from a place where you can look up the Certificate of Analysis, prepared by an outside lab. I like the most potent milligram to ounce ratio so I don't have to use a lot. My current source is from "Liberty Brand Hemp." Once ounce for $170 seems spendy, but at 6000mg in that ounce it's the most bang for your buck I could find.

good advice...it is a flooded and confusing area.  

How long does that ounce last?  I don't think I could afford it unless it was at least a few months supply?

One of the main culprits of inflammation is an acidic diet. If the food is acidic, the body needs to protect itself since acid is caustic. Hence the inflammation. Acidic body conditions also often cause bone problems because calcium is one of the main buffers the body uses to try to neutralize the acidity. So it gets calcium from the bones.
Change your diet to alkaline and it's amazing what happens. However, for some people that is a huge change. There are many foods that people are used to eating that cause acidity in the body, including meat, eggs, and grains. There's a very good book by Arnold Ehret called Mucusless Diet Healing System.

Annie Collins wrote:One of the main culprits of inflammation is an acidic diet. If the food is acidic, the body needs to protect itself since acid is caustic. Hence the inflammation. Acidic body conditions also often cause bone problems because calcium is one of the main buffers the body uses to try to neutralize the acidity. So it gets calcium from the bones.
Change your diet to alkaline and it's amazing what happens. However, for some people that is a huge change. There are many foods that people are used to eating that cause acidity in the body, including meat, eggs, and grains. There's a very good book by Arnold Ehret called Mucusless Diet Healing System.

Thank you!
I don't eat wheat or sugar, we cook all of our meals from scratch, every last one of them so nothing sneaking in in that area.
I love raisins and finally gave them up (again) because I do notice more joint pain when I binge on them.

I eat two, maybe three eggs a week, homemade tempeh almost every day and ground turkey is our only meat at the moment, lots of beans and some rice...saurkraut, lots of greens and organic apples have been my only fruit since last fall.  buckwheat and masa, homemade hominy...I see on a list that buckwheat is good, corn bad...I wonder about hominy since it is limed and cooked?

I stopped all dairy again recently but just yesterday added back in yogurt.

Is there a web site that you would recommend? I'd rather not buy a book yet but would be interested in food lists.

All good, but check out my most recent podcast on ferns - VERY good for arthritis and inflammatory complaints, but rarely, if ever mentioned in modern herbals.

Annie Collins wrote:One of the main culprits of inflammation is an acidic diet.

have you personally found changing your diet to be helpful for inflammation or joint pain? I ask because I've seen plenty of reference to acidic diet and inflammation but I haven't had much luck improving my pain with diet myself. every body's different, I suppose.

A few years back , I did the "Whole 30 diet" (basically no grain, dairy, sugar) and the reduction in joint pain (knees especially) was noticeable. I did it for only the 30 days and slowly reverted to my normal diet again. (part of the point is to reintroduce foods one at a time to notice effects on your system, like a FODMAPS/allergen diet) The first week is the hardest as the habits/cravings are strong, after that it is easy. I did find that there was a lot more meal preparation (fewer prepared foods, more fresh vegetables), and slightly different recipes... like my giant quart-sized mocha latte is just too much almond milk when substituted 1:1 for cow's milk, but 4 espressos in just 1/2 cup almond milk is good! I even made my own ketchup with pineapple juice in place of sugar, since I couldn't deal without having it.

I've found that eliminating certain things has helped my joints, immensely. The thing about eliminating stuff, is that it pretty much intrinsically means something else must take its place. When we moved here, it was leaving behind municipal water supplies (which I'd been filtering, but that is only partially effective), for our new, deep, sweet-water well. That meant that our gut flora were no longer being destroyed, with every sip of water. We added even more fermented foods, in a wider variety. While there absolutely are certain foods we've bumped up, and added, we've also stopped eating wheat, sugar, and all synthetic sweeteners. I also seldom eat legumes, because they're very inflammatory, for me. I feel better and stronger, move better, and even my moods swing less - and that's really saying something for a woman in my specific phase of life.

You might wish to consider Solomon's Seal root as a part of your protocol. It sounds like you have lots of good ideas for anti-inflammatory herbs, which is definitely important. Solomon's Seal is more for bringing moisture back to the joint and surrounding connective tissues, making movement much easier, less painful and reducing inflammation in the process, since it reduces friction. I've found it to be a huge help for my own joint pain and connective tissue issues. Another neat thing about it is that it can restore the proper tension to ligaments, whether they are too tight or too loose. I usually use the tincture. It doesn't take much to make a notable difference, usually.
You can read more about it here.

It is SO personal.  Diet is a huge driver, and just because you made it from scratch doesn't mean it is good for YOU.  Soy in any form, including as feed for the chickens that make my eggs, bothers me immensely.  Many spices and dried herbs bother me, not because of the spice itself but the processing-many are very high in mold mycotoxin because of where they grow, especially organic! Pepper is one of the worst, for me.

Most of the essential oil brands have an anti inflammatory blend, look up several and then research each of the individual oils.

Buy a cheap blood sugar monitor (cheap test strips, not the machine itself) and use it until you just can't afford to lose more blood! Take it first thing in the morning, then 15 or 30 minutes later, then every 15 minutes after you eat until you are back to a normal value, at bed, if you get up at night. Keep a journal and include ANY food or exercises or stress as well as the glucose readings.  I know a surprising number of skinny vegan diabetics whose only noticeable symptom was inflammation. After a week or two you should see patterns and can cut back on the bloodletting.  

There are the minerals, especially zinc, chromium, selenium, magnesium and potassium when it comes to inflammation and arthritis. Your area of the Ozarks is deficient in some particular minerals, but I don't remember which.  Azomite and green sand in the garden can do a world of difference.  

Alpha lipoic acid is a good one for blood sugar and inflammation.  I don't remember dose, but taken before eating.

My mom had serious degenerative arthritis. She SWORE by sour cherry juice. It's expensive, she'd buy it in glass bottles and dilute it into water and drink it every night. Placebo or not she seemed to start doing a lot better! If the sour cherry wasn't there she got black cherry but she said the sour cherry worked better.

Thanks for all of the good suggestions everyone!
I knew I could count on this group

R Scott wrote:It is SO personal.  Diet is a huge driver, and just because you made it from scratch doesn't mean it is good for YOU.  Soy in any form, including as feed for the chickens that make my eggs, bothers me immensely.  Many spices and dried herbs bother me, not because of the spice itself but the processing-many are very high in mold mycotoxin because of where they grow, especially organic! Pepper is one of the worst, for me.

Most of the essential oil brands have an anti inflammatory blend, look up several and then research each of the individual oils.

Buy a cheap blood sugar monitor (cheap test strips, not the machine itself) and use it until you just can't afford to lose more blood! Take it first thing in the morning, then 15 or 30 minutes later, then every 15 minutes after you eat until you are back to a normal value, at bed, if you get up at night. Keep a journal and include ANY food or exercises or stress as well as the glucose readings.  I know a surprising number of skinny vegan diabetics whose only noticeable symptom was inflammation. After a week or two you should see patterns and can cut back on the bloodletting.  

There are the minerals, especially zinc, chromium, selenium, magnesium and potassium when it comes to inflammation and arthritis. Your area of the Ozarks is deficient in some particular minerals, but I don't remember which.  Azomite and green sand in the garden can do a world of difference.  

Alpha lipoic acid is a good one for blood sugar and inflammation.  I don't remember dose, but taken before eating.

I do know that wheat and sugar, for me, are problematic, even sweet fruit.  
The only soy I eat is fermented although I know that either the soy or the tempeh mold could still be a problem...they don't seem to cause any noticeable change.

I dry a lot of our own herbs but also buy some in bulk...had not considered molds on them.

A blood sugar monitor is not something I would have thought to try and will definitely look into that.

As for minerals in the soil, I do use a lot of basalt rock dust everywhere here...and then I used green sand for awhile in my potting mix...and some azomite when we first moved here.  Maybe I'll get more as my application was probably very light and this area has been barren except for grasses for quite a long time.  

My preference would definitely be 'food as medicine' and to control pain through diet so this has given me some good ideas...thanks!

Judith and Tel (and others)-- I know this is not what you asked, but just as an aside, in case it's helpful. Topical diclofenac has really been a game changer for me - I've got arthritis in my hands (another fun part of the hyperflexibility syndrome I've got) and there doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to when it flares. I don't like to take NSAIDs (or anything else, really) as it is, and definitely not continuously for pain that may not even be there all the time.
I only use the gel when (and where) I'm hurting; there are studies showing that the topical form can be just as effective as oral for hand and knee arthritis, without the systemic side effects. I try to eat "the good things" (pepper, turmeric, ginger, etc), soak in epsom salts, do my stretches, etc, but this is good when I'm in pain and need some more immediate help.

From what I understand, osteoarthritis is the body's way of shoring up and protecting a joint that is having problems. Modern medical techniques tend to treat inflammation as a disease that should be eradicated. But I understand inflammation to be healing. Force stopping inflammation with things like NSAIDs or corticosteroids would also logically force stop the healing. If there is arthritis, there must be some stress factor causing it. Misaligned skeleton, physical trauma, emotional stress, lack of certain nutrients, excess of certain chemicals, something. I heard one doctor say, "If your doctor tells you it's from old age or 'wear and tear,' fire your doctor!" If the inflammation is stopped without eliminating what caused it, the problems will likely persist. I think the food as medicine approach is the right track. Food provides building blocks to regenerate. The kicker is what caused the problem in the first place?

Tereza Okava wrote:Topical diclofenac has really been a game changer for me

that's great to hear. I didn't know such a thing existed. a big part of my hesitation with the diclofenac involved also being prescribed omeprazole to protect my stomach from the diclofenac. a drug that requires another drug to prevent ulcers...


and Jordan Holland: I'm with you for the most part. but tracking down just what's causing my pain will likely be a long-term project. I already got the signal from my body that I need to make changes, so I don't see any further utility in experiencing the same pain.

The yucky white stuff from the inside of grapefruit peels. All the connective tissue between the sections. In general all the parts of a grapefruit that a person generally doesn't want to eat does wonders for me. When ever I do something like splitting firewood that flares up what ever is wrong with my fingers is prevented as long as I remember to eat that stuff before or immediately after. It also works as a treatment but even better as preventative. I don't really know what my condition is, just that there have been times when I couldn't turn a door knob and the grapefruit thing fixes it.

Jordan Holland wrote:From what I understand, osteoarthritis is the body's way of shoring up and protecting a joint that is having problems. Modern medical techniques tend to treat inflammation as a disease that should be eradicated. But I understand inflammation to be healing. Force stopping inflammation with things like NSAIDs or corticosteroids would also logically force stop the healing. If there is arthritis, there must be some stress factor causing it. Misaligned skeleton, physical trauma, emotional stress, lack of certain nutrients, excess of certain chemicals, something. I heard one doctor say, "If your doctor tells you it's from old age or 'wear and tear,' fire your doctor!" If the inflammation is stopped without eliminating what caused it, the problems will likely persist. I think the food as medicine approach is the right track. Food provides building blocks to regenerate. The kicker is what caused the problem in the first place?

Yes, yes and yes!

The cause is what I've been trying to focus on for years although just recently it has limited my activity.

Our last house, for 15 years, had steep stairs and I was up and down them all day, fast...since moving to a small one story house that has been missing and I think unintentionally was a big part of my exercise program...we hiked and walked miles regularly but nothing as fast as my stair climbs.  I think I've pinpointed at least a part of this issue to that lack over the past five years.

Food is different though.  I might get the blood sugar monitor that R. mentions above or maybe try to pay more attention to the meals that just knock me out within minutes....not from eating too much but some combination that is making me sleepy rather than energizing.

thanks!

Interesting to read Cats Claw being helpful. I have a large supply of it but have not been using regularly. Anyone using it with benefits?

Michael Adams wrote:Interesting to read Cats Claw being helpful. I have a large supply of it but have not been using regularly. Anyone using it with benefits?

I took it several years back along with Japanese knotweed for tick fever and lymes.  I kept taking it alone for another year and it seemed to help a lot with joint pain.
Recently I started the two of them in case my recurring joint pain was from those tick diseases again and it did take the pain down quite a bit.  I'm taking a minimum dose and don't intend to increase it.  Someone mentioned that it is quite bitter as tea so you might want to capsulize it if it's loose?  For now I"m buying standardized capsules but if I keep using it I'll probably go to a bulk supply.

I've been noticing stiffness in my feet. They were becoming more painful to walk on, and especially near the joints, were tender to the touch. I do not have a diagnosis of arthritis, so this certainly may be due to something else. My diet consists mainly of fruit, vegs, and meat, with some rice and garbanzo bean products (hummus, noodles). Doing more to change my diet was not on the top of my list, so I tried a therapy that seemed to really make an immediate difference, called TRT, or Tissue Regenerative Therapy.  Here's a quote about it:  "During a TRT treatment high energy sound waves are delivered to painful, injured, or degenerated areas of the body. This stimulates healing and tissue regeneration. During this process blood circulation is improved and stem cell activity is initiated to enhance the body’s ability to heal and regenerate damaged tissue."
I'm enthused to try it again! The practitioner had me walk around between getting the left and right foot done. The one that had been treated felt almost like rubber, it was so flexible!
That said, I do feel that there would be a variety of herbs, etc. that would also be of help. I will look into ideas posted here if needed!

Jordan Holland wrote:From what I understand, osteoarthritis is the body's way of shoring up and protecting a joint that is having problems. Modern medical techniques tend to treat inflammation as a disease that should be eradicated. But I understand inflammation to be healing. Force stopping inflammation with things like NSAIDs or corticosteroids would also logically force stop the healing. If there is arthritis, there must be some stress factor causing it. Misaligned skeleton, physical trauma, emotional stress, lack of certain nutrients, excess of certain chemicals, something. I heard one doctor say, "If your doctor tells you it's from old age or 'wear and tear,' fire your doctor!" If the inflammation is stopped without eliminating what caused it, the problems will likely persist. I think the food as medicine approach is the right track. Food provides building blocks to regenerate. The kicker is what caused the problem in the first place?

My specialty is finding the cause. Generally antalgic posture, that is holding the body in an awkward position trying to avoid pain but causing pain where too much stress is placed as a consequence.
The knees have to straighten at an awkward angle on the stairs if the spine does not flex to keep the center of gravity in the right place.  I am not allowed to use the word by state law because it is reserved for doctors diagnosis but what they are saying is that the joint [arthrose] has an itus or osis which is a reaction to an irritation. Some foods are pro inflammatory making the repair process to slow and others are anti inflammatory regulating the repair process properly. Note in my signature line I also help people with magnet therapy. Magnets speed up electrons changing how water reacts in the tissue. The negative side being anti inflammatory and the positive side pro inflammatory thus can be employed to assist in the repair process.

I used to take ibuprofen, landscapers’ M &Ms. I stopped. Now if anything hurts, I change what I’m doing. If I’m still, I move around. If I’m moving, I rest. I use ginger and turmeric and vinegar a lot in cooking. Avoiding alcohol helps. I’ve had two new knees and one new hip twice. New ones work, but there are some things they can’t do like the old ones. I have changed to mostly whole plants eating, lost 25 pounds. Crawl around on the floor with babies as often as I can. All seems to help. I’m 81, so I’d like to keep going as long as possible.

Eczema is linked to inflammation. I'd always had eczema off and on until I started eating a raw vegan, high fruit diet.  For ten years it was gone. Now, trying to base my diet on caloric staples I can grow here, I've started eating grain again - no wheat, all whole grain. And the eczema is back. If I eat squash, potatoes, sweet potatoes etc. instead of grain I do much better.

Lots of options offered here.  I can only share my personal experience.  I have found that liquid pectin (Certo brand) with grape juice to be very, very effective for my hip osteoarthritis.  (Google 'People's Pharmacy' for users' dosages, etc.)  Years ago, a friend with bad hip pain was very excited to find that this worked very well for her, and when I needed it, it also made a big difference for me.  Also, I take the glucosamine/chondroitin pill (from Costco), 2 a dy, as my husband has done this for a long time and has no joint discomfort.  I've also added MSM (I think it's a sulphur compound), and a nurse confirmed that it's known as helpful for joint pain.

Year before last I had to empty a 'hoarder' relative's home...  lifted/carried well over 3,000 lbs, per the scales at the dump, over 6 months.... an awful lot of work, and my hips suffered as a result  I am very  grateful that, with the above, the pain has mostly receded.... unless I "forget' and ask my old hips to help me lift a heavy item, again : )  BTW, 'they' are 74 yo.

Oh, and I have to avoid NSAIDs for the health of my one kidney... gave the other one to that relative, 14 yrs ago : )

C Mouse wrote:My mom had serious degenerative arthritis. She SWORE by sour cherry juice. It's expensive, she'd buy it in glass bottles and dilute it into water and drink it every night. Placebo or not she seemed to start doing a lot better! If the sour cherry wasn't there she got black cherry but she said the sour cherry worked better.

I believe that mulberry juice has the same properties (both also are major sources of natural melatonin).

My dad swears by his vitamin D pills. He's in no way a naturopathic type of person, but when he'd bought to high of a dose for my grandma, he didn't want to let the bottle go to waste. So he started taking them. His knees improved a ton, so much so that he no longer really feels any pain in them. But, he did not mention them helping with his Osteoarthritis in his hands. Osteoartritus, from what I understand, isn't so much about inflammation, as the actual wearing down of the cartilage from use.  So, i don't know how much the anti-inflammatories can do to combat the wearing away at the joint...but maybe inflammation makes them wear away faster? I don't know enough to say.

Things I use for my arthritis: Adding collagen to my tea, taking vitamin D, avoiding sugar/grain/processed food/starches. Eating more vegetables. Other antiinflammatories like ginger, turmeric, quecetin, red tea, licorice root, burdock root, dandelion, hibiscus, etc. These do seem to help a lot, though they're not instant. I prefer stuff like that because they don't really have side effects. So, even if they don't work, they don't hurt, either.

personal experience.  I have found that liquid pectin (Certo brand) with grape juice to be very, very effective

Back in the 1950's I was calling on an elderly man taking care of his elderly mother who told me his mother had insisted on this remedy. Since I have come to understand what is  the possible mechanism of action. Pectin is a soluble fiber meaning fluids dissolve into it. This holds irritating compounds, expelled by the liver into the bile, until they are expelled instead of being reabsorbed back into the blood stream. Another factor that I learned more recently is that These soluble fibers can be digested by bacteria in the colon releasing butyrate and other compounds that are anti inflammatory.

onr thing you could try is sprouting broccoli then freezing the sprouts
then make smoothies with the frozen sprouts while they are still frozen

Thank you for your deep research. I'm 72, so arthritis is a problem to boot, I've had a bad accident in 2006 that almost took my left leg. I kept it, but then tripped and I now have a lot of pain in my right hip. I am also concerned by my use of Ibuprofen but it has become my go-to because it is cheap and it works. I know that the long term effect on the liver and kidneys may not be good! All this to tell you that there is, I feel, a strong genetic component to the effect of a constant use of Ibuprofen. I have been using Ibuprofen every day, or nearly every day since 2006 without ill effects.
Doctors have tried other things and now, I get a shot in my back every 3 months or so. They are a lot more expensive than Ibuprofen. Because of COVID, I could not get a shot 15 days before or 15 days after either of the 2 shots, so this time, it has been 5 months without a shot [with the doctor's schedule not meshing either!] She put me on Meloxicam [a general anti-inflammatory] as well as on gabapentin  to tide me over to April 20th, which sort of worked [not very well. It messes with my metabolism and I gained weight, plus I became constipated, a trouble I never had before].
She switched me to pregabalin, which makes me sleep like a baby but is also slowing my metabolism, so I'm trying to stay more active, and spring helps as there are so many chores which will use energy. During the day, however, I still use some Ibuprofen once in a while, when the pain is too much for me to do my chores. A warm bath also eases some of the pain in the evening.
All this long saga so folks understand that while yes, there will be in the long term some side effects from Ibuprofen, some folks can take it for extended periods of time [2006-2021] without any problem, although I'd rather not.  I have used most of the home remedies you indicated but they didn't really work for me. Of those, Meditation has worked best. I love pickled ginger on fish [does pickled ginger work as well as regular powdered ginger? I don't know] and I try to eat fish rather than red meat.
It took all of this to reduce my pain to acceptable levels, so I can work in the garden and the forest like I'm used to.
This said, I will try again any other home remedy I have not yet tried, so thank you for all your efforts.

Several things have helped me. In order of helpfulness:

- Tai Chi - I'm lucky to have classes near me (Master Moy style) but since Covid canceled in-person classes, I've been doing livestream classes at awareness tai chi. Awesome instructor IMHO.
- Not eating grains - esp. wheat, but also corn. Rice seems OK
- PT exercises for the arthritic knee (one is worse than the other.) Lunges, squats, etc. My PT watched me stand up from a squat to the floor, saw that I did it mostly on the good leg, and assigned me one legged squats. Evil! But really helped.
- Turmeric supplement

I have arthritis and get very good results from putting a pinch of turmeric in almost everything, as well as using cbd products.  I actually have a side business selling ZILIS products because it worked so well for me.  I have weened myself down to only needing cbd on occasion, although it works best when you use if for at least a week and then make your doses smaller.  Zilis.com/Remelle for info.  

Hi 👋
O make golden paste with organic turmeric powder, fresh black pepper, ginger, coconut oil and cinnamon. All organic and not hear treated.
I make it up using coconut milk powder and hit water. It is delicious 🤤 and not only helps with arthritis but helps me to sleep too. I can't recommend it highly enough. X

Sadly it doesn't help with typos 😜😜

One plant I haven't seen mentioned is Gotu Kola or Centella asiatica. I've known it for a long time called the Arthritis plant. It grows commonly here in Australia but not sure about in the US.  It grows easily and has a few look alike plants so needs to be properly identified.
https://herbsarespecial.com.au/plant-information/herb-information/gotu-kola/

I use Lazarus Naturals 1:1 CBD CBG in coconut oil. 25mg/ml each. They have veteran and senior discounts. 2oz/60ml bottle costs less than $100. lazarusnatruals.com Read their website and see if you're eligible to apply for discounts.