Researchers at King’s College London and the University of East Anglia have discovered that women who consume a diet high in allium vegetables, such as garlic, onions, and leeks, have lower levels of hip osteoarthritis. The findings, published in the BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders journal, not only highlight the possible effects of diet in protecting against osteoarthritis, but also show the potential for using compounds found in garlic to develop treatments for the condition. A relationship between body weight and osteoarthritis was previously recognized, although it is not yet completely understood. This study is the first of its kind to delve deeper into the dietary patterns and influences that could impact on development and prevention of the condition.
Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis in adults, affecting around eight million people in the U.K., and women are more likely to develop it than men. It causes pain and disability by affecting the hip, knees, and spine in the middle-aged and elderly population. Currently there is no effective treatment other than pain relief and, ultimately, joint replacement.
The study, funded by Arthritis Research U.K., the Wellcome Trust, and Dunhill Medical Trust, looked at over 1,000 healthy female twins, many of whom had no symptoms of arthritis. The team carried out a 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.
They 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.
To investigate the potential protective effect of alliums further, researchers studied the compounds found in garlic. They found that a compound called diallyl disulphide limits the amount of cartilage-damaging enzymes when introduced to a human cartilage cell-line in the laboratory.