Garlic Exerts Protective Effect Against Hip Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis in adults, causing pain and disability by affecting the hip, knees and spine in the middle-aged and elderly population. The condition affects women more frequently than men, and currently there is no effective treatment other than pain relief and, ultimately, joint replacement.  Frances Williams, from King’s College London (United Kingdom), and colleagues completed detailed assessment of the diet patterns of the twins and analyzed these alongside x-ray images, which captured the extent of early osteoarthritis in the participants' hips, knees and spine. The researchers found that in those who consumed a healthy diet with a high intake of fruit and vegetables, particularly alliums such as garlic, there was less evidence of early osteoarthritis in the hip joint. Reporting that: “The data show an independent effect of a diet high in fruit and vegetables, suggesting it to be protective against radiographic hip [osteoarthritis],” the team concludes that: “Diallyl disulphide, a compound found in garlic and other alliums, represses the expression of matrix-degrading proteases in chondrocyte-like cells, providing a potential mechanism of action.”