Wow, talk about getting sidetracked. Over a year ago I wrote a post entitled Is it Sand in the Knees or Chondromalacia? When I wrote the post, it was my intention to discuss possible causes and solutions for the condition. I got a little sidetracked.
Sandy Knee Reminder
It wasn’t until I had to perform exercises to strengthen and retrain gluteal muscles for my sciatica problem did I remember the post. You see, my chiropractor prescribed strengthening exercises. As I was performing the move to show that I was using the right technique, the sandy crunching sound in my knees was almost deafening. Fortunately, my condition is noisy, but not painful.
Fixing Noisy Knees
My earlier sandy knee post explained possible causes of the sandy sound. My chiropractor, not knowing I had written a post over a year ago, gave me a quick rundown of what causes the problem.
Since my knees don’t hurt, he suggested that I start taking glucosamine, chondroitin and MSM. He himself started taking it about 20 years ago when he was undergoing severe joint pain. It has helped him tremendously.
Glucosamine, chondroitin and MSM are naturally occurring substances and as with most holistic or natural cures, results are not immediate. It takes about 3 months before noticing a reduction in pain or improvement in condition. In my case, improvement means less noise when sitting/standing or going upstairs.
What Glucosamine, Chondroitin and MSM Does
If you didn’t click on the associated links, in essence, these substances help to rebuild the joint cartilage and/or slow down the joint deterioration. Here’s another article on how glucosamine and chondroitin work together.
I’ve decided to start taking glucosamine/chondroitin and MSM regularly. Hopefully, I’ll remember to post an update in three months or so.
Word of warning: If you have a shellfish allergy, be careful when selecting glucosamine. Some preparations are made using shrimp, lobster or crab shells. Do your research.
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I am curious to where you are with this?? Any improvement? I have the same thing and really curious to see how it’s worked for you.
Jennifer, I still have a sandy sound in my knees. I think they’re a little less noisy. I don’t really notice the sound until I do deep knee bends in a quiet area. I’m still taking the gluclsamine/chondroitin with MSM.
Hi Felicia,
What happened since then? Did it get any better or worse?
Regards,
Peter
Hi Peter,
Actually, I had stopped taking glucosamine, chondroitin and MSM. I forgot all about it.
My knees are basically the same. Fortunately, they don’t hurt (well, except for a recent unexplained bout of knee swelling), but all in all, things remained the same. I guess that’s good considering it’s four years later. It sort of makes me wonder if I had continued taking it for the four years if my knees would have quieted down.
Sorry, I don’t have much new news to report.