Those two tablets of glucosamine sulfate may cost a mere 20 cents each day, but a new study suggests the popular supplement isn't worth even that much to patients with painful arthritis in their hips.

Glucosamine -- a compound found in healthy cartilage -- is touted for an ability to keep joints functioning well and arthritis pain at bay. But it was no better than placebo pills at reducing either the symptoms or the progression of hip osteoarthritis, according a randomized, controlled trial by Dutch researchers.

The study followed 222 patients with hip osteoarthritis for two years. Half got 1,500 milligrams of glucosamine sulfate -- two capsules -- once a day. The others got dummy pills.

The researchers found no significant differences in either the narrowing of the space in the hips or in pain assessment between the groups after three months, one year and two years.

The report appears in the Annals of Internal Medicine. An accompanying editorial cautioned against reading too much into a study of just 222 patients with early arthritis.

Contact staff writer Josh Goldstein at 215-854-4733 or jgoldstein@phillynews.com.

Source: The Philadelphia Inquirer. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. Powered by Yellowbrix.

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