Guest guest Posted January 15, 2004 Report Share Posted January 15, 2004 Nature's Answer to ArthritisBy Dr. Charles L. Cochran In 1964, what I think is one of the most important nutritional discoveries of the 20th century, cetyl myristoleate, was made in Rockville, Maryland. And yet, I'd bet my next paycheck that very few Americans have ever heard of the discovery, or its discover, Harry W. Diehl, a researcher employed forforty years at the National Institutes of Arthritis, Metabolic, and Digestive Diseases. Mr. Diehl's many years of intensive research resulted in isolation of a nutrient that truly may be nature's answer to arthritis. What Is It? Cetyl myristoleate is a fatty acid ester. I've had seven different chemistry classes in my training, but when I first heard that explanation, it didn't mean much to me. Let's try this a different way. Fatty acids are the building blocks of oils or fats like amino acids are the constituents of proteins. To make an ester of a fatty acid, we need to add an alcohol molecule to it. So, to synthesize cetyl myristoleate, we add myristoleic acid (a fatty acid) to cetyl alcohol (a fatty alcohol), and add heat. Just like that, two rather common natural substances are turned into another natural substance, cetyl myristoleate. Since Mr. Diehl's discover of it in mice, cetyl myristoleate has also been found in sperm whale oil and in a small gland of the beaver. The Future I believe, as Mr. Diehl stated in his patent and article, that the real potential of this product lies in its ability to prevent arthritis. Now, those individuals who are genetically predisposed to developing arthritis or those who may develop arthritis after experiencing joint trauma, for example, may be able to turn around this whole chronic inflammatory process. Those of us in a position to provide information and product to victims of arthritis must choose between waiting for the fruits of uncertain research and carefully moving ahead now. Given what we know at this time, if there are mistakes to be made, to do nothing is the greater error, for on balance, benefits seem to far outweigh the risks. I'm looking forward to more practitioners using cetyl myristoleate in their practices. As effective as cetyl myristoleate is in reversing arthritic conditions, I expect it to have equally far reaching effects in treating many chronic inflammatory conditions. The Discovery The cetyl myristoleate story began in the 1950's when Harry W. Diehl;s next door neighbor, a carpenter, developed severe rheumatoid arthritis. Diehl (pronounced "deal") is a deeply religious man whose feelings overwhelmed him as his friend's condition worsened. He thought, "Here I am working at the National Institutes of Health, and I have never seen anything that was good for curing arthritis." He decided to establish a laboratory in his home and embark on a search for something to relieve the pain and disability of his neighbor and the millions of people who suffer from arthritis. Unfortunately, he was too late to help the neighbor, but Diehl's research did lead to the discovery of cetyl myristoleate, which many some day be hailed as one of the significant discoveries of the twentieth century. As a researcher, Diehl knew that finding a cure for arthritis first meant inducing the disease experimentally in research animals. He started with mice, and quickly realized that he was unable to induce arthritis in them. Diehl said he tried every way he could to give arthritis to mice, but they just would not get it. Then, he contacted a researcher in California who wrote to him, "If you or anyone else can give mice arthritis, I want to know about it, because mice are 100% immune to arthritis." At that moment, Diehl's research instincts told him that what he wanted was already somewhere in those mice. It was a long, tedious job, working on his own spare time, but Diehl finally found the factor - cetyl myristoleate - that protected mice from arthritis. As Diehl said, "It didn't come on a silver platter to me, but after years of chemical sleuthing and job old-fashioned chemical cooking, I found it!" On thin layer chromatography of methylene chloride extract from mice, Diehl noticed a mysterious compound, which was subsequently identified a cetyl myristoleate. As Diehl was to prove, cetyl myristoleate circulates in the blood of mice and makes them immune to arthritis. Cetyl myristoleate is now known to exist in sperm whale oil and in a small gland in the male beaver. At this time no other sources in nature are known to contain cetyl myristoleate. While the first amounts of cetyl myristoleate for experimentation were extracted from mice, Diehl quickly developed a method for making cetyl myristoleate in the lab by the esterification of myristoleic acid. Experimentation To test his theory that mice are immune to arthritis because of cetyl myristoleate. Diehl began to experiment on laboratory rats. This research was reported in an article written in conjunction with one of his NIH colleagues in the Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences. In summary, what Diehl did was inject ten normal mice in the tail with Freund's Adjuvant (heat-killed desiccated Mycobacterium butyricum) to which rats and certain other rodents are susceptible (it produces arthritis). In a period of 10-20 days, no noticeable arthritis developed in the legs or paws. Mice in a second group were injected in the left hind paw. Again, after 10-20 days, no arthritis was detected. Then, a group of rats was injected with cetyl myristoleate, and 48 hours later, they were given the arthritis-inducing Freund's adjuvant. A control group of rats was given Freund's adjuvant only. Both groups of rats were observed for a total of 58 days with respect to weight change, hind and front leg swelling, and general well-being. All rats receiving only Freund's adjuvant developed severe swelling of the front and hind legs, lagged in weight gain, and were lethargic and morbid. Those receiving cetyl myristoleate before receiving Freund's adjuvant grew an average of 5.7 times as much as the control group and had little if any evidence of swelling or other symptoms of polyarthritis. Cetyl myristoleate gave virtually complete protection against adjuvant-induced arthritis in rats. Furthermore, a 1:1 mixture of cetyl myristoleate and a homologue, cetyl oleate, gave results not significantly different from administering cetyl myristoleate alone. Now, of course, I wasn't there at the end of this experiment, but I'm sure Harry Diehl was one excited researcher, maybe even joyfully running around his lab. Next, he could run to the bank with earning from his great discovery. Wrong! Nothing was done with his discovery until he applied for and received a use patent for rheumatoid arthritis in 1977. I haven't met Mr. Diehl, but there are a few thing I can tell by reading the patent and the article on his research published in the March, 1994 issue of the Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences. First, he is a fabulous researcher and a brilliant chemist. Second, he knows nothing about marketing! This discovery should have been shouted from every roof top, broadcast on national radio and television, and shared in every possible way with the millions of people who suffer from the oftentimes crippling effects of arthritis! It wasn't until 1991, when he developed osteoarthritis in his own hands, knees, and feet that Diehl decided to try his discovery on himself. After using it, his arthritis was totally gone! At this point he came to the full realization of what he had. Shortly afterwards, he and a chemist friend submitted the animal research results to the Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the healthcare profession was made aware of it for the first time. Since then many practitioners have started using it, including myself. We have bumbled our way through small clinical trials, trying to determine proper dosage, treatment time, indications, contraindications, and complementary nutrients. Now, cetyl myristoleate has been used in tens of thousands of patients with astounding results in the relief of arthritis. And, Mr. Diehl has recently (October, 1996) obtained another U.S. patent for cetyl myristoleate for the treatment of osteoarthritis, which means that this product has been patented from both rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. My Own Experiences I had heard a lot of unbelievable stories before trying cetyl myristoleate, and I have heard quite a few since. In fact, there is one M.D. who wrote that it would be of benefit in treating anything from rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes to migraine headaches and schizophrenia. I'd also heard claims that arthritis suffers had complete remission of symptoms after completing only one month of treatment! Well, needless to say, I was more than a bit skeptical. I've always been a little bit of a risk taker though, and since no had had noted any side effects, I decided to give it a try. If it proved to be only half as effective as what I had been hearing, I knew I was on to something fantastic. With the malpractice situation being what it is, and all the hungry attorneys out there. I decided to try the product on myself first. I have suffered with arthritis since 1967 when I tore all the supportive tissue in my shoulder during a motorcycle accident. I've had three separate surgeries for chronic dislocation after the accident and many, many trips to an orthopod for steroid injections so I could keep working. Being a chiropractor, I was always a bit humbled when I had to go for those injections, but they did give me some temporary relief. If injected in the right spot, the stuff was magic. But, unfortunately, all of the symptoms would return after two or three weeks, I knew how dangerous continuing injections of steroids were, but it was all I had to keep me working. In 1988, I discovered the benefits of glucosamine sulfate. It wasn't the magical pain reliever that prednisone was, but after ten to twelve weeks of daily use, I started to feel a fluid movement in my shoulder that I hadn't experienced in years. The pain and inflammation were almost gone. What a miracle! I immediately started to share it with all of my arthritic patients. I shared it with my dad who is also a chiropractor and was actually considering retirement because of the arthritis in his hands, and within a few months, most of his joint pain was gone. I had a little difficulty, however, convincing my patients of the benefits of glucosamine sulfate because it took so long before any of the desired results were noticed and it is quite an expensive product. When patients stopped taking it, the symptoms would soon reappear. But I love it, and in spite of the cost, took it every day. Last year, a friend of mine shared the story of cetyl myristoleate. I still had some residual should pain - a dull ache that was there most of the time. I really wasn't aware of it much except at night when I rolled over on my right side and the pain would increase only to eventually wake me up. This would happen five or six times each night. I assumed this was a sign of getting older since all of my more mature patients told me that as I "matured" I wouldn't be able to sleep as soundly or as long. Well, they were wrong. After taking the cetyl myristoleate for only four days, I had my first good night's sleep in years! I remember waking up on my right shoulder early in the morning with no shoulder pain. I was afraid to say anything, though, fearing that I might jinx the whole thing. But this was enough for me to start sharing it with my patients. I have since recommend various forms of it to several hundred people with different types of arthritis and other inflammatory conditions. Based on this experience, I can say with all the conviction one could muster up that cetyl myristoleate may well be one of the major nutritional discoveries of the century. How Does It Work As wonderful as cetyl myristoleate is, I have found a few limitations and a few other products that enhance its effectiveness. But first let me describe the results that I have found in my clinic. I am a chiropractor with post-graduate training in acupuncture. My practice is primarily treating musculo-skeletal problems, so I don't have much to say about treating conditions like Crohn's disease or schizophrenia. But I can tell you this: cetyl myristoleate, without any complementary nutrients, has been proven to be at least 70% effective in treating the various forms of arthritis. The results are relatively fast. And, after completing a one month program, only a handful of my patients required a full follow-up treatment, with a few more needing small, occasional maintenance doses. by using the topical lotion of cetyl myristoleate and adding a few complementary nutritional products like glucosamine sulfate and methylsulfonylmethane, I believe the effective can be increased by another 15% or so. I no longer had to sell my patients on sticking to many months of arthritis supplements and waiting for the results. This was exciting! There seems to be a consensus among the health care practitioners that I have communicated with as to its level of function. First, cetyl myristoleate works as a surfactant, which tends to lubricate tissues and then the synovial fluids, making them less sticky. This allows the joint to move more freely. Secondly, it functions like the omega-3 fatty acids in regulating prostaglandin and leukotriene production to decrease inflammation. And last, it has an immuno-modulating effect on hyper-immune responses such as we find in rheumatoid arthritis and, in some believe, in non-infective prostatitis. Absorption of cetyl myristoleate can be a little tricky, so I recommend each capsule of cetyl myristoleate be taken with lipase. Many arthritis victims have decreased or absent production of lipase, the enzyme that breaks down oils and fats into smaller, more absorbable particles, so it is good to add this enzyme to the treatment plan. Furthermore, cholecystectomy patients or those with a history of liver or gall bladder disease or obstruction may also have trouble absorbing cetyl myristoleate without further help. For these patients, I recommend lecithin along with lipase to emulsify the oil. Yours for good health, Dr. Charles L. 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