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Q. I read in your column that someone used “Certo” in juice to relieve painful arthritis in the hands. Is this the pectin with which one makes jelly? I did buy some and started putting a tablespoon in 8 ounces of pomegranate juice, as I have horrendous arthritis in my hands.
A. Certo is in fact a liquid pectin product used by home canners to make jams and jellies thicker. Readers have told us for ten years that Certo mixed with grape juice can help ease arthritis pain. More recently someone suggested substituting pomegranate juice.
Here is a testimonial: “I read about grape juice and Certo last fall while I was suffering a painful medial column collapse of the right foot that the doctor attributed to psoriatic arthritis. I was going to have surgery in late November, but tried the juice with Certo in October. I didn't tell the doctor, as I didn't want to be admonished.
“For some mysterious reason, the pain started subsiding, then went away. The doctor was amazed but said surgery should only be done as a last resort. I see him next month for a checkup and will mention the juice with Certo.
“I'm not saying that's what put the arthritis in remission, but something happened, as I could hardly walk at the time. So I'll continue taking it.”
We include recipes for grape juice with Certo, gin-soaked raisins and the Sam Houston arthritis drink in our Guide to Home Remedies.
I don't have a comment, but a question about the Certo in grape juice remedy for arthritis pain. Is it only the brand Certo that works, or can any pectin be used? For instance, can one use Ball's 100% Natural Fruit Jell Pectin instead of Certo and get the same (possible) relief? Thanks for your advice, I find this website extremely helpful and interesting.
PEOPLE'S PHARMACY RESPONSE: IF ANYONE HAS TRIED THIS, PLEASE LET US KNOW IF IT WORKED.
Is there any information, please, about using ANY TYPE of juice with the Certo regimen.
Thanks in advance, I love your show, website, and medical honesty. Some other shows push drugs so hard, it's rather sickening. You guys are refreshing, and super helpful. --Hal
PEOPLE'S PHARMACY: SO FAR AS WE KNOW, THERE IS NO SCIENTIFIC DATA ON CERTO WITH JUICE OF ANY KIND. THERE IS SOME RESEARCH ON CONCORD GRAPE JUICE SUGGESTING THAT ALONE IT HAS SOME ANTI-INFLAMMATORY ACTIVITY.
would like to try the certo/grape juice. what is the recommended dosage, and how often can I take it? Once a day,week,month?
Thanks
My husband is using Ball pectin with grape juice. Could not find Certo brand. He also has used the powder form. 8 ounces of grape juice to 1 tablespoon of the pectin. He mixed up a whole batch in a pitcher. 1 packet of the pectin to 64 ounces of grape juice. He seems to think it is helping.
I'm the one featured in the article above with the foot problem. I use 1 TBLS in 8 oz low sugar grape juice once a day. I would think pectin is pectin, but as Certo is available, I use it.
Fruit juice beverages are just "sugar water" and despite a few vitamins they contribute, aren't very good for overall health, especially if blood glucose control isn't maintained with such a high sugar load.
Gelatin from homemade bone broth is excellent for good joint health as well as good gut/intestinal health. It is easily absorbed in a form the body can use and doesn't tax a damaged digestive system. Bone broths (bones & cartilage simmered for hours in water with a small amount of acid such as vinegar or lemon juice added to help release the bone minerals) used to be common in people diets, but now are rare, with packaged, processed convenience foods and boneless cuts of meat, not to mention avoiding meat nutrients altogether. Our increasing rates of osteoporosis bear this out, too.
Inexpensive slow cooker appliances are ideal for making bone broth on a frequent basis and can be left unattended for many hours. The prep time only takes a few minutes; nearly anyone can do it. Homemade bone broth is easy on the food budget, too, because it can be made with less expensive bone-in meat cuts and scraps (more flavorful, too), and uses more of the animal instead of wasting it. And it is "real food" like our ancestors made (and thrived on), not a lab-created food particle from a manufacturing facility, like Certo.
I have bone on bone shoulder arthritis with extreme pain on arm movement, If I thought it would help I would eat a cow flop. I have just started a tablesoon of Certo in grape juice daily. When can I expect results? Thanks.
Could taking Certo/grape juice for joint pain result in constipation?
PEOPLE'S PHARMACY RESPONSE: WE HAVE NOT HEARD OF THIS REACTION BEFORE, BUT INDIVIDUALS MIGHT REACT IN THIS WAY.
I have used 4 oz of grape juice with a teaspoon of liquid Pectin daily for 6 months. It has eliminated the hip joint pain. However if I stop taking it daily, the pain comes back. For me it is a treatment not a cure. Does any one have experience with a cure or with long term side effects of this treatment?
At 18 years old I started having joint pain in left shoulder. Doctors could do nothing for me. After 7 years of not being able to lift my left arm above my head a coworker jumped up when he saw me reach for some diskettes. He said he had a cure for the pain, he said certo. After 7 years of pain I would of tried worm dirt if someone suggested it. One tablespoon in the am and one at night was the dose and within 3 days it healed. Wow! Well It comes back every 4 years or so and as soon as I dose up on Certo it goes away again within 2 days. Don't know why it works but please try it if you have pain in your joints as I have for 22 years now.
My sister sent me this web page. I really didn't look at it until I called her the other day. She has always suffered with knee and leg pain, She told me she had been taking it for 3 weeks and that she couldn't remember ever feeling this good. She swears by it. I started taking it that night after talking with her, its only been 3 days, but with this awful pain in my neck, shoulder blades and back in my back, I'd do almost anything to get rid of the pain, I don't know about you but i'm giving it a try.
Not familiar with this but I have worn all my cartilage from my hips and have had bone on bone pain. I have had great success with eliminating all inflammatory foods like all animal products and eating high nutrient dense foods which are anti-inflammatory. (Vegetables, legumes and berries) I eat a good dose of Yellow and Red onions at night on my lentils and add turmeric and ginger (google it) which are great for pain. I sleep like a baby and have no pain!
Have suffered from sever pain in hips for three years...with other shoulder pain for 10.
Three weeks into the program...1 tablespoon to 8oz of no suger added concord grape juice in the morning...but consumed over three hours...then half again as in the late afternoon..same pace...I have gone from two or more vicodin per day to NONE..maybe one Ibuprofen a day now...
lower bowel activity increased and abit more noticable to the nose..but well worth it!
Years of pain nearly gone!
When told of this by older friend I took it with a grain of salt...but I trust the guy and thought "hey, what the hey...give it a try...
wife feels better too.
Not a quick fix..give it a coupla weeks at least..then get Certo on line in quanity for a steep discount...
My thanks to my pal eric...
Harold
I have arthritis in my knee and took 1-2 Meloxicam as needed, and regularly took 2 a day with pain still; read your column; started drinking grape juice every day (we keep bottled in office) and immediately all pain went away and dropped Meloxicam to 1 a day; may try going without Meloxicam entirely; didn't try Certo; my father suffers from severe arthritis; since starting regularly drinking a pomegranate health drink from Guatemala, said his arthritis is much better.
Is Certo something a diabetic can take????
PEOPLE'S PHARMACY RESPONSE: CERTO CONTAINS WATER, FRUIT PECTIN, LACTIC ACID, CITRIC ACID, POTASSIUM CITRATE AND THE PRESERVATIVE POTASSIUM BENZOATE. NOTHING THERE POSES PARTICULAR PROBLEMS FOR PEOPLE WITH DIABETES.
I didn't see the answer to the question "Can it be any type of juice?" and "Can I use low sugar grape juice?"
Please answer
Can you make up a large batch of the Grape juice and Certo at one time, or do you have to make it a glass at a time? Pushed for time in the a.m. and would like to be able to just pour, drink and go...
LOVE this site and all the free advice! (Also cured my toenail problem using Vicks - that I read about here).
PEOPLE'S PHARMACY RESPONSE: YOU CAN MAKE UP A LARGE BATCH. IT KEEPS WELL IN THE REFRIGERATOR. THERE IS A HYPOTHETICAL RISK THAT THE POTASSIUM BENZOATE IN CERTO COULD REACT WITH THE VITAMIN C IN GRAPE JUICE TO FORM BENZENE. THIS MAKES US NERVOUS. WE DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH OF AN ISSUE IT IS, BUT WORRY MORE ABOUT IT IN A SOLUTION THAT HAS BEEN STORED FOR SOME TIME.
I have used both Certo and the powder form of Sure Jell in grape juice.
I am a skeptic by nature but my joint and muscle pain were getting unbearable and I refuse to take more drugs so I decided to try it. After three weeks I am a whole new person. I have a little pain in one knee but I can sleep through the night and do things with my grandson that I hadn't been able to do when the pain was so bad.
I have had no problem with constipation, by the way but, on the recommendation of my doctor (who says that Americans don't' get enough fiber) I take two fiber supplements daily.
I also heard it lowers cholesterol but I haven't had that checked. If so I will gladly go off the statin drug I take for that!
Why did the above person decide to extend the consumption of juice over a period of three hours?
There are so many different stories.... How much of the Certo and grape juice do I take a day?
PEOPLE'S PHARMACY RESPONSE: ABOUT 1 TABLESPOON CERTO IN 8 OUNCES OF GRAPE JUICE A DAY SEEMS TO WORK FOR MANY PEOPLE.
Does anyone know whether gelatin can be successfully substituted for pectin?
It's quite a bit cheaper and I'm curious to know if there is a downside (other then vegetarian or religious issues) for using an animal rather then a vegetable product.
I use 1 tablespoon of Certo in 6-8oz of grape juice daily and the ache in the joints of my fingers has gone away. Started feeling much better after one week. Works for me but my wife still won't try it...