Joint supplements: the rules and how to build one

Why a joint supplement is a medicine

A capsule, tablet or powder presented for a therapeutic use, such as relieving joint pain or supporting cartilage, is a medicine, and most are listed medicines (AUST L). That means every ingredient comes from the Permissible Ingredients Determination, every claim from the Permissible Indications Determination, and the sponsor holds the evidence for each before the product is sold (TGA approval). A sports product presented for recovery and supplied as a tablet, capsule or pill is a medicine too, since 30 November 2023 (sports supplements).

The joint claims a listed medicine can make

The Therapeutic Goods (Permissible Indications) Determination (No. 1) 2025 sets each claim's evidence type and its requirements (permitted indications). The joint claims and what each needs:

Claim (as worded in the Determination)	Where	Requirements
Decrease/reduce/relieve mild joint aches and pains	Part 2, item 3	Label statement "If symptoms persist, talk to your health professional."; presentation must only refer to mild joint symptoms
Decrease/reduce/relieve mild joint pain/soreness	Part 2, item 5	As above
Decrease/reduce/relieve mild joint stiffness	Part 2, item 6	As above
Decrease/reduce/relieve symptoms of mild arthritis/mild osteoarthritis	Part 2, item 8	As above
Helps enhance/improve/promote joint mobility	Part 2, item 11	Presentation must not imply or refer to any form of arthritis or osteoarthritis unless qualified as mild
Helps maintain/support joint cartilage health	Part 2, item 20	As for item 11; scientific evidence only
Helps decrease/reduce/relieve cartilage loss/wear/tear/damage	Part 1, item 62	As for item 11; scientific evidence only
Helps enhance/promote joint health	Part 2, item 18	Presentation must not imply or refer to bone disease or disorders, such as rheumatoid arthritis, juvenile arthritis, debilitating osteoarthritis or osteoporosis
Maintain/support joint mobility/flexibility	Part 2, item 29	As for item 18

The other joint claims above can rest on scientific or traditional evidence. Where the evidence is traditional, the claim carries a traditional context qualifier on the label. Part 7 (muscles) adds claims such as "Maintain/support healthy ligaments" and "Maintain/support tendon health".

The word that matters most is "mild". A pack, an ad or a product name that speaks of arthritis without "mild", or of a disease such as rheumatoid arthritis, falls outside every joint claim on the list. Under section 6, a claim's wording can be varied on the label, but not so it changes the meaning or intent of the indication, or implies the medicine treats a serious form of a disease or prevents or cures one. The label is advertising too, so the same care runs through the website and social posts (TGA advertising).

Glucosamine, chondroitin and other ingredients

The Therapeutic Goods (Permissible Ingredients) Determination (No. 3) 2026, in force since 16 October 2026, permits these forms as active ingredients (permissible ingredients):

• Glucosamine hydrochloride (item 2368), glucosamine sulfate (item 2369) and glucosamine sulfate sodium chloride (item 2371): no specific conditions in their entries.
• Glucosamine sulfate potassium chloride (item 2370): potassium chloride is a mandatory component. Taken by mouth, the medicine must contain less than 550 mg of potassium chloride in each dosage unit, and its label carries warnings about kidney disease and about heart or blood pressure medicines, and a statement to keep it out of reach of children.
• Bovine chondroitin sulfate (item 938), bovine calcium chondroitin sulfate (item 937), bovine potassium chondroitin sulfate (item 941) and bovine sodium chondroitin sulfate (item 942): no specific conditions as actives. Section 6 of the Determination also sets conditions for ingredients of animal origin, which bovine chondroitin is.

An ingredient that isn't in the Determination can't go in a listed medicine until it is added, which takes an application to the TGA (new ingredients). Every other ingredient in a joint formula is checked against its entry in the same way at the brief.

Packaging

A joint formula built on potassium salts needs a look at child-resistant packaging. Under TGO 95, a listed medicine with potassium salts in a pack holding more than 4,000 mg of elemental potassium needs child-resistant packaging, unless it is a divided preparation with 40 mg or less in each dose, or the potassium is there as glucosamine sulfate potassium chloride complex. More in our guides to packaging and capsules, tablets and softgels.

From our records

• A joint formula for a sports nutrition brand: an established Australian sports nutrition brand wanted a joint-support formula in its range as a TGA-listed medicine. We built the formula, the claims evidence, the TGA listing, managed production and a later listing update to keep it current, with manufacturing and freight managed through to the brand's warehouse. Delivered in 2023, alongside further products we scoped for the brand.
• ATP Science's core range: four TGA-listed capsules reformulated from scratch, with room to improve on ingredient quality, dose and permitted indications, plus a food-pathway performance powder. Five products in production from late 2023.