As far as herbal alternatives to NSAIDS for fighting inflammation, It's not cheap, but it works. For the avg person looking for relief from joint pain, i'd say give it a try. Of course, like all things in life, what works for one may not for another so it may or may not give you the relief you seek. But since it definitely works for me & so many others, there is a good chance it might work for you. I think it's worth spending the $ on a bottle to find out....Living with painful inflammation & spasms and occasionally suffering from flair ups of a pinched nerve in my back/neck for about 2 years now, i know if something works for real or not. (I had been on celebrex for over a year for severe inflammation & pain in my shoulder/neck and back spasms. I have various contradicting dr diagnoses so i'm not exactly sure what is wrong-- bursitis, a muscle strain in my back, disc degeneration in my spine at the c4-c5....the jury is still out on this one and the pain is still here....I also have the beginnings of arthritis that showed up on xrays in my spine and I have developed some joint pain in my knees and hips over the past few years)..........When i take zyflamend I can feel relief in my body, and also I can discount the "it's just a placebo effect" from all the naysayers, thanks to my relentless painful inflammatory condition in my neck/back. In the area under my left shoulder blade I can feel the same very distinct tingling sensation that only celebrex used to give me after i took a dose. I've tried many anti-inflammatories, muscle relaxers and some pain killers for my condition. No other nsaid was strong enough to do this and no other drug prescribed to me throughout my 2 year ordeal has given me that feeling, but i can feel it when i take zyflamend. So i can tell it is getting to work on that spot in my back just like the celebrex did.Unfortunately for me, i seem to have a complicated injury/condition and i still struggle with the back/neck pain to some degree every day no matter what i take. Plus i have gerd which can be aggravated by the potent herbs in the zyflamend. Add the price to the equation and it's not worth it for me to take this every day. So i tend to just take ibuprofin right now, until my next horrible painful flair up......****I find that I have to drink a lot of water or my system feels sluggish & my bladder feels funny, almost like when you get a bladder infection. not fun. And if taken on an empty stomach does not sit well at all. So follow the directions & be sure to take it with plenty of water & at mealtimes.