In osteoarthritis, the cartilage in the joints breaks down. Taking chondroitin sulfate, one of the building blocks of cartilage, might slow this breakdown. Chondroitin sulfate is a chemical that is normally found in cartilage around joints in the body is normally manufactured from animal sources.

Chondroitin sulfate main use is for osteoarthritis. It is often used in combination with other products, including manganese ascorbate, glucosamine sulfate, glucosamine hydrochloride, or N-acetyl glucosamine.

Normally chondroitin will be taken along with glucosamine as joint pain support and it is common to find joint care formulas that contain these two elements together.