New supplement

MarySparrow
MarySparrow Member Posts: 5
edited 28. Nov 2023, 14:10 in Living with arthritis

Hello everyone, thank you for welcoming me to the VA community.

After being very active all my life and a dance-teacher for 20 years, I've developed severe arthritis (OA) in my hips. It has come on very quickly over just a few months and recently, my knees have become affected too. I have been given exercises to do, but my mobility is severely reduced and walking is painful. I'm waiting for surgery but have just read about Activ8 and wonder if anyone has had any success with it?

Yours, Mary

Comments

  • CarylW
    CarylW Member Posts: 274

    Hello@MarySparrow

    I am glad you have found our online community. We are a friendly and supportive group of people, and I hope you will get some useful help from our members.

    I understand that you have Osteoarthritis in your hips, pain in your knees and that your mobility is affected, so walking is painful. I don't know if you have explored our website, but you may find these links are helpful to start with:

    https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/conditions/osteoarthritis/
    https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/conditions/osteoarthritis-oa-of-the-hip/

    I hope someone with experience of Activ8 will be able to help further.

    Do keep in touch and let us know how you get on and any further questions you may have.

    Best wishes

    Caryl

    Need more help? Call our Helpline on 0800 5200 520 Monday to Friday 9am to 6pm

  • MarySparrow
    MarySparrow Member Posts: 5

    Hi Caryl,

    Thank you for getting back to me so quickly! And thank you for the relevant OA links. I'm eager to get to know as much as I can about this condition, so I will definitely study them. I'm really glad there's a site where people who are going through the same thing can help each out and encourage each other.

    Thanks again,

    Mary 🕊️

  • jonr
    jonr Member Posts: 425

    Hi Mary and welcome to the forum.

    I don't take Activ8 but I am familiar with most of it's ingredients which are a mixture of regenerative supplements like Glucosamine and Type 2 collagen and anti-inflammatories (Boswellia and Turmeric). Will it work? I found Glucosamine and Collagen made my symtoms worse, not better but that was me and you may well be totally fine. On paper the active ingredients are well-recognised as being helpful in managing Arthritis so there's no harm in giving Activ8 a go and seeing if it has any positive effects. I don't think any of the ingredients are painkillers so you might like to look at things like co-codemol and CBD capsules (derived from Cannabis). I find gels and creams quite effective such as Voltorol 12 hour gel, FlexiSeq and Hemp cream. All these won't pong the house down like deep heat and tiger balm either. I can also recommend a TENS machine which is electric shock therapy. I have OA in both knees,bone on bone and find wearing elasticated knee supports aid stability and the compression helps reduce swelling so I'd recommend those as well.

    Please do check in with your progress and ask away if you've any questions.

    Jon

  • MarySparrow
    MarySparrow Member Posts: 5

    Hello Jon,

    Thank you very much for all your advice. It's encouraging, and helpful to hear from someone who has been where I am now, and I will definitely try some of your recommendations in terms of pain relief, and support for the knees.

    Talking of Activ8, the claims made by Dr Paul O'Connell for his formula are really something, and as you say, the various ingredients are known to work for some people. I feel a little circumspect about it on two counts, firstly, I couldn't find any reviews on his website (physical nutrition), and secondly, I found his hard-sell spiel quite patronising. Well three counts actually, because the price differential between one month's supply and six month's supply seems disproportionate and in my opinion, more to do with profit-making than handling costs.

    Nevertheless, if it is truly as effective as he claims, it might be worth the high cost, and so I have been coming round to the idea of giving it a go. If I do, I will certainly report back to the VA community!

    Many thanks again,

    Mary

  • jonr
    jonr Member Posts: 425

    Ah yes - price! Activ8 is I think very expensive for what it is, most of the ingredients can be bought separately amd ingested in capsule form for less money via online retailers selling on EBay, Amazon or on the high street. Even some common or garden supplements like VitaBiotics include Glucosamine and Turmeric in their preparations. However, Activ8 has all of these together in one handy capsule so it does have the convenience factor.

    In your position I'd probably buy a month's worth and see how I get on, if your condition improves then it's money well spent. If it worsens or there's no change in say a couple of weeks then it's likely money down the drain.

    Best wishes,

    Jon

  • MarySparrow
    MarySparrow Member Posts: 5

    Good advice, thank you Jon!

    Watch this space!

    Best wishes,

    Mary

  • noddingtonpete
    noddingtonpete Moderator Posts: 1,239

    Hi

    Complimentary medicines work for some people but not all (same in some respects can be said of conventional medicines I suppose) so if you find one that works for you that's great. Just be aware that ones that people recommend may not work for you as it did for them. Also, be aware that if someone is promoting their product then they may be talking it up.

    Have a look through the following from our website

    https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/complementary-and-alternative-treatments/what-are-complementary-and-alternative-treatments/

    and

    https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/your-experiences/hints-and-tips/complementary-medicines-hints-and-tips/

    Good luck in your search and I hope you find something that helps.

    Need more help? - call our Helpline on0800 5200 520Monday to Friday 9am to 6pm

  • MarySparrow
    MarySparrow Member Posts: 5

    Good morning Pete,

    Thanks very much for your advice. I will indeed study the links you've sent me. I'm reading everything I can at the moment!

    But I'll feedback any news from my experiments with different supplements.

    Best wishes,

    Mary

  • young03
    young03 Member Posts: 2

    Hi. I've just watched this video too and, while I'm fascinated, it also throws up some red flags for me. I have read one review from someone who said they got a full refund when it didn't work though so I am tempted to try it. Have you tried it @MarySparrow? I'd be really interested to hear from anyone who's given it a go. The reviews I have found are all really recent and super positive so I'm not 100% convinced by them either! To be honest, doing some research after watching the video has led me to this site so it's not been time wasted either way!

  • Ellen
    Ellen Moderator Posts: 1,841

    Good Morning @young03 a very quick welcome to the online community. I see from your post that you are interested in whether @MarySparrow did indeed try the supplement.

    I'm so glad that your internet search led you here at least!

    Do please introduce yourself if you feel comfortable doing so and join in wherever you feel comfortable.

    The most popular category after Say Hello is Living with Arthritis hopefully you'll find plenty of threads relevant to your own condition.

    My best wishes

    Ellen.

  • Arjie
    Arjie Member Posts: 3

    Would love to hear if anyone has tried Activ8 and if it’s worth trying.

    The videos are very persuasive despite the price …

  • shadylady1
    shadylady1 Member Posts: 1

    Anyone tried this?

  • Ellen
    Ellen Moderator Posts: 1,841

    Good morning @shadylady1

    Welcome to the online Community.

    I see you might want to hear about people's experiences with Activ8

    Here are all threads in which it's been discussed:

    https://community.versusarthritis.org/search?query=activ8&scope=site&source=community

    I hope it helps you decide whether to try it.

    Best wishes

    Ellen.

  • Mollbhan
    Mollbhan Member Posts: 23

    I suspect the response ( or lack of it ) says it all, the ingredients of all these expensive miracle cures can usually be purchased for a fraction of the price.

  • seanmct
    seanmct Member Posts: 1

    This has all been really helpful. I found this site after seeing an NHS physio. I was also interested in Activ8 and agree with the various reservations about the style of publicity..

    your link to this:

    https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/complementary-and-alternative-treatments/what-are-complementary-and-alternative-treatments/?_ga=2.12928119.1722737877.1713508173-308358893.1713508173

    was a great starting point and I now understand at least some of the components of this [Activ8] compound. One has a high rating (4 out of 5) and 4 components are ok - scoring 2. . I have decided I will try Activ8, despite the cost, for a couple of months and see if it makes any difference to my deteriorating the condition [OA].

    Your research paper does suggest there are other supplements worth looking at more closely [Capsaicin, SAMe]

  • Poppyjane
    Poppyjane Moderator Posts: 846

    Welcome @seanmct to the online community

    We are glad you found us via your physio, and that you have found the links helpful. Do let us know how you get on with Activ8 I am sure there will be lots of interested people. As we know some products work for some of us and not others and we all go through a trial and error period to find our individual "best" solution.

    So it is useful to have other complementary products and suggestions like a TENS machine as an alternative.

    We are a friendly group here to offer information, friendship and support and we look forward to hearing from you again soon.

    Best wishes

    Poppyjane

    If it would be helpful to talk to someone ring the Helpline 0800 5200 520

    Monday - Friday 9.00a.m. - 6.00p.m.

  • jen333
    jen333 Member Posts: 4

    My mum swears by Activ8 for her shoulder pain. I have severe hind foot arthritis in both feet and in a lot of pain (currently waiting for injection appointment). I started with the Activ8 but wasn't regular at taking it. I've started again this week with a challenge to keep it up everyday so will let you all know.

    I got it on monthly subscription for about £35 per month which isn't as bad as the full price.

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