Cetyl-myristoleate is a naturally ring waxy alcohol. It was accidentally discovered during the 1970's by a chemist named Harry Diehl at the National Institutes of Health in Rockville, Maryland. Diehl had been working for years with a particular strain of white mice that never got arthritis, even when purposely exposed to it. The mice had such a bad reputation among investigators that they carefully avoided using them whenever they wanted to study arthritis. Diehl was curious about why this type of mouse was so resistant to arthritis. Consequently, he looked for the chemical in the mouse's body that gave it immunity from the disease. After considerable trial and error, he isolated cetyl-myristoleate. When he injected the substance into mice and rats that were susceptible to arthritis, the compound prevented them from developing this condition. Diehl continued his research with animal studies. He successfully synthesized the compound from beef fat, which worked as effectively as the mouse extract.

The secret might have never gotten out if Diehl himself hadn't developed severe osteoarthritis. Faced with a future of heavy medication, constant pain, and immobility, he decided to inject himself with some of his cetyl-myristoleate preparation. To his amazement, his pain disappeared almost immediately. The swelling in his joints decreased and his mobility increased dramatically. Without further injections, he continued to improve. In a matter of weeks, he could hardly believe he had ever had arthritis. Furthermore, his arthritis never returned and he had absolutely no side effects.

Following the surprising results of his self experimentation, Diehl applied for and was awarded a U.S. Patent in October 1996, for use of cetyl-myristoleate in the treatment of osteoarthritis.

His physician was so impressed that he urged Diehl to publish his findings. With the doctor's help, Diehl's paper was published in the Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences in March 1994. The article caught the attention of a researcher at the San Diego Clinic Immunological Center in California. Physicians there began treating patients with cetyl-myristoleate for a host of autoimmune disorders. They witnessed remarkable results.

Cetyl-myristoleate is a waxy substance derived from the tallow of beef. It is similar in structure and activity to fatty acids. Although we don't know exactly how cetyl-myristoleate works, it is believed to act on memory T-cells in the immune system; i.e., it may "re-program" them so they do not attack one's own connective tissues. That is why it is so effective for autoimmune disorders, or those in which the body attacks itself. However, as I discussed above, several disorders that do not necessarily involve joints are rheumatic in nature. All these disorders cause pain, inflammation, and swelling. Cetyl-myristoleate can help relieve all these errant immune responses.

Humberto Siemandi, M.D., Ph.D., the primary research administrator at the Hospital SM in Baja, California, conducted a 32-week multi-center trial with 106 patients. The trial was double-blind, randomized, and placebo-controlled. In other words, patients were randomly assigned to receive any of 3 preparations for 30 days: plain cetyl-myristoleate; cetyl-myristoleate enhanced with glucosamine hydrochloride, sea cucumber, and hydrolyzed cartilage; or a non-reactive compound. Approximately 20% of the patients withdrew from the study because they could not handle the withdrawal from nicotine, caffeine, or alcohol. These substances interfere with the action of cetyl-myristoleate and were not allowed during the trial.

The results strongly suggest that both cetyl-myristoleate alone and cetyl-myristoleate with supporting nutrients may help treat many forms of arthritis-based diseases, including psoriatic arthritis. Most of the patients responded with one treatment course, but a few required a second course to achieve complete and lasting results. Many of the patients included in the trial had long-standing chronic conditions.

L.S. Macklas, Ph.D., conducted a second clinical trial involving 48 subjects. The group represented a cross-section of ethnic and socioeconomic groups, and included 28 female participants between the ages of 33 and 82, and 20 males aged 28 to 74. All patients had either osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis. The subjects received two 75mg capsules of cetyl-myristoleate each morning and each evening for 4-6 days for symptoms that were mild to moderately severe. Those with severe to crippling arthritis were given the same number of capsules for 7 days, followed by a 7 day, treatment-free period. A second trial of 5 1/2 days followed. All the patients showed improvement after just 3 days. They continued to improve, even if their condition was mild enough to not require additional capsules.

Cetyl-myristoleate is extremely safe, does not interfere with other nutrients, and even large doses - up to several grams per trial - usually cause no problem. Some patients have reported mild stomach upset. However, this can usually be avoided by taking digestive enzymes with the capsules. Others have reported some fatigue, but this may be due to the abrupt discontinuation of caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol.

For some natural treatments to work, you need to modify your diet. Cetyl-myristoleate can be difficult to absorb, and it is important to avoid foods that might interfere with it. As I mentioned above, you must avoid caffeine, chocolate, alcohol, and nicotine. Additionally, large amounts of competing fats, such as butter, margarine, and oils, should be restricted or eliminated.