Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is a diagnosis that increasing numbers of people are being given. However, although you have a label to define your condition you will be no further forward in understanding what causes it or how you can recover from it.
Although many theories exist, the cause is not known. My personal view is that there will be no single cause - the body will have simply reached the point at which can no longer continue and its "fatigue" at coping against the odds manifests in the symptoms associated with this condition.
[An explanation of how this process takes place is provided in the Food Intolerance Handbook - although given in respect of food intolerance it can be applied to environmental factors, stress, trauma, illness and nutritional deficiencies.]
[An explanation of how this process takes place is provided in the Food Intolerance Handbook - although given in respect of food intolerance it can be applied to environmental factors, stress, trauma, illness and nutritional deficiencies.]
The accepted signs and symptoms are:
- Severe fatigue which lasts for at least 6 months
- Fatigue is not relieved by rest
- A reduced level of activity
A further way of identifying the condition is if you have at least four of the following symptoms:
- Impaired memory or concentration
- Sore throat
- Tender lymph nodes, or "glands," in the armpit or neck
- Muscle pain
- Joint pain affecting multiple joints
- New headaches (headaches that did not occur before you started to have severe fatigue)
- Unrefreshing sleep
- Feeling bad or having discomfort after any type of exertion
Fatigue can be caused my many factors and if your doctor has ruled these out and said "sorry it looks like CFS" then you are left in a limbo - you have a label but no way forward. As the cause is not known, no agreed treatment is available.
One thing is very clear. If you have CFS your system is run down and in need of help. Many people with CFS work very hard at improving their diets to no avail. If you have attempted to change your diet and had no improvement then go back to square one and find out first if you have any food intolerance problems. If you do not wish to go through the process of eliminating and testing foods then at least simplify your diet and reduce the stress your body is experiencing.
Doctors continue to be resistant to the idea that a change in diet can help. Morris and Stare [1] reviewed a number of suggested diets and suggest that none should be tried as they cannot be proved to be effective. Well that's really unhelpful advise if you've got CFS and your only concern is to get well. Evidence is all very well but as no single cause has been found for CFS we can, I believe, safely assume that there will be solutions that will work for some and not for others.
If you are eating the wrong diet for YOU then you will be making your CFS worse. I also contend, from my own experience, that CFS can be caused by your body's inability to continue with an onslaught of food that you are intolerant of. [I was unable to do the simplest of tasks for over two years due solely to food sensitivities].
We are all different so explore all avenues but please don't ignore your diet - food is vital to a healthy and vital body. Find out what works for you. You may also like to know that a study by van der Steen [2] has linked CFS with enzyme deficiencies and recommends that anyone with CFS is screened for enzyme deficiencies.
(1) Morris DH, Stare FJ. Unproven diet therapies in the treatment of the chronic fatigue syndrome. Arch Fam Med 1993 Feb;2(2):181-6
(2) van der Steen WJ. Chronic fatigue syndrome: a matter of enzyme deficiencies? Med Hypotheses 2000 May;54(5):853-4
(2) van der Steen WJ. Chronic fatigue syndrome: a matter of enzyme deficiencies? Med Hypotheses 2000 May;54(5):853-4