MSM (Methylsulfonylmethane or Methyl Sulfonyl Methane) is a naturally occurring sulfur compound found in our bodies as well as in many common beverages and foods, including milk, coffee, tea and green vegetables. MSM supplies the body with an organic form of sulfur which plays a crucial role in forming muscles, nails, hair and skin as well as building healthy cells. Sulfur is necessary for making collagen, the primary constituent of cartilage and connective tissue. It is responsible for the formation of body proteins through the formation of disulfide bonds, which hold connective tissue together. MSM has been shown to add flexibility to cell walls while allowing fluids to pass through the tissue more easily. MSM enhances tissue pliability and encourages the repair of damaged skin.

Dietary MSM comes from fresh vegetables, fresh fruits, meats, seafood, and milk. However, cooking or even moderate processing of these products tends to drive out or destroy the MSM content. People, generally speaking, will be sulfur-deficient unless they eat their fish and meat raw and their vegetables unwashed and uncooked. Furthermore, MSM levels in humans decline with age, resulting in symptoms of fatigue, tissue and organ malfunction, and increased susceptibility to disease. Theses facts have led to the recent popularization of MSM as a dietary supplement

Naturally-occurring sulfur, such as that found in MSM, is not similar to inorganic sulfides, sulfites and sulfates to which many people are allergic. In its purified chemical form, MSM is an odorless, essentially tasteless, white, water-soluble crystalline solid. It is one of the safest substances in biology, similar in toxicity to water.

The cycle of MSM begins in the ocean where microscopic plants called plankton release sulfur compounds. These salts are transformed in the ocean water into the very volatile compound dimethyl sulfide (DMS) which escapes from the ocean as a gas. DMS rises into the upper atmosphere, and in the presence of ozone and high-energy ultraviolet light, gets oxidized twice, converting it to DMSO2 , otherwise known as MSM. Unlike the DMS, MSM is very soluble in water, and returns to earth in the form of rain. On earth, plants take MSM into their root systems and concentrate it. MSM and the sulfur it contains is incorporated into the plants' structure. Through the plants' metabolism, MSM, along with other sulfur compounds it has spawned, is ultimately mineralized and transported back to the sea.

Recent research is offering new hope for arthritis sufferers seeking a new, natural approach to alleviating pain.

A small, double-blind study of patients with proven degenerative joint disease found that those who took 2250 milligrams of MSM daily for six weeks reported an 82 percent average improvement in pain relief, compared to an 18 percent improvement reported by patients receiving the placebo treatment.

Acording to Ronald M. Lawrence, M.D., Ph.D, co-author of The Miracle of MSM , those taking MSM to alleviate their arthritis pain may also find improvement in the health of their hair and nails. In two recent double-blind, placebo-controlled, pilot trials, performed by Dr. Lawrence, oral supplementation with MSM proved to be a valuable addition to hair and nail growth. Hair and nail health was significantly improved in a short term of six weeks.

`“I have been prescribing MSM for my patients experiencing pain from arthritis and fibromyalgia, and they kept saying how great their hair and nails looked,” said Cathleen London, M.D., a Boston-based family practitioner. “It’s good to see an efficacy study confirm that there are benefits in this area.”

The study showed 50 percent of the subjects taking MSM showed increased nail length and nail thickness growth compared to the group on placebo, and 100 percent of the subjects taking MSM showed increased hair growth compared to the group on placebo. In addition, 30 percent of the subjects taking MSM showed improvement in hair brilliance, while none of the subjects on placebo showed such an improvement.