Chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia are both destructive and disabling diseases that the medical community recognize as to be different manifestations of the same disease.
Chronic fatigue patients suffer severe fatigue but have more sore throats, swollen glands and fever; fibromyalgia patients suffer from severe fatigue and total body pain. They both share a common cause: oxidative stress.
The first time a victim of chronic fatigue visit a doctor, he usually recommend a comprehensive medical examination. On the next visit the doctor will listen to the patient’s complains again and review past, present and family health histories.
He will direct another physical examination and after valuation is complete, the doctor will carefully examine the results, occasionally he discovers evidence of diabetes, anemia, hypothyroidism or some other disease process that is the cause of these fatique symptoms.
But mostly he finds nothing wrong and the doctor may even suggest that it’s all in the patient’s head. The doctor may say: well, you are really in excellent health. Give it some time and see if you feel better. But the patient is certain that he has given it already plenty of time before he went to the doctor the first time.
The patient feels frustrated and starts to look for an alternative solution in a more natural way. He may visit a natural therapist who does a hair or eye analyses, blood and urine tests and usually recommend certain herbs, diet changes and nutritional supplements to correct the problem.
The patient has finally found someone who has diagnosed the problem and although it seems his health and sense of wellbeing may improve because of lifestyle changes,he is “not himself” and may even start feeling depressed.
Alternative practitioners are trying to find out which nutritional deficiencies the patient may have and than try to correct them. But they are not correcting the root of the problem, which is oxidative stress. He probably still feels frustrated and keep looking for help from other sources.
People who suffer from chronic fatigue are in the beginning stages of degeneration, because of oxidative stress. They should have a serious look at their lifestyle and enviremental factors that may develop oxidative stress.
When people are victims of oxidative stress, this not only creates fatique, but it also weaken their immune system. With the use of nutritional supplements, patients overcome oxidative stress and they start to function normally, which makes them feel much better.
The number of people suffering from fibromyalgia in the US alone are close to 8 million, more than 80% are women. Those people are usually living in total pain or extreme fatique and suffer from lack of sleep.
They may wake up stiff, experience mental confusion, irritable bowel and TMJ syndrome. Many develop fibromyalgia after a serious illness, a major injury or a stressful time in their lives.
As you could have read in my previous articles, all these situations increase the production of free radicals in our bodies. Once this disease starts, holding in seems impossible. Because this is a chronic, lifelong disease, it takes time , at least six months, to regain one’s health.
Starting with a nutritional supplement program, combined with a healthy diet, a moderate aerobic exercise program with a light-weight-resistance program.
When people are starting to improve, the first thing they notice is that they can think and concentrate better. Also they sleep better and finally the pain starts to leave.
Most doctors recognize the benefits of a healthy diet and a moderate exercise program. However, these doctors don’t fully understand the consequences of oxidative stress. Otherwise they would recommend strongly the use of nutritional supplements.
The result would be a significant improvement in their patient’s health and a decline in patients who are looking for alternative health care.