This chronic fatigue syndrome update presents articles about fibromyalgia, early menopause, irritable bowel syndrome, and visual stress. Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a condition in which the individual constantly feels too tired to perform any activity – even the ones they enjoy. Worse yet, no amount of sleep or coffee can shake off the constant feeling of being tired.
Chronic fatigue syndrome affects roughly 836,000 Americans, of which some shocking 84 to 91 percent are not even diagnosed.
Chronic fatigue syndrome symptoms can be prompted by moderate strain to the muscles and nerves: Study
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Chronic fatigue syndrome symptoms can be prompted by moderate strain to the muscles and nerves. The study looked at 80 individuals – 60 subjects with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and 20 without the syndrome. Participants reported their levels of fatigue, body pain, lightheadedness, concentration difficulties, and headache status every five minutes during the 15-minute period of either passive straight leg raises while lying on their back, or sham leg raises that didn’t cause strain.
Participants were then contacted 24 hours after the session to report on the symptoms. Those who underwent the true strain reported greater symptom intensity for lightheadedness, along with overall symptoms score. Continue reading…
Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) associated with early menopause: Study
Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is associated with early menopause, according to research. The association between CFS and menopause may help explained why CFS is far more common among women than men. Furthermore, being aware of the association may prompt healthcare workers to monitor women who may be at risk for CFS.
The study is based on the comparison of 84 women with CFS and 73 healthy control women who completed detailed questionnaires on their gynecologic history.
The women with CFS were 12 times more likely to have pelvic pain unrelated to menstruation, compared to the healthy women. CFS women were also more likely to report excessive bleeding, significant bleeding in-between periods, and missing periods. CFS-affected women were more likely to use hormones for purposes other than contraception, compared to the control women. Continue reading…
Fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome can be improved with vitamin B12 and folic acid: Study
New research suggests that fibromyalgia and myalgic encephalomyelitis (also known as chronic fatigue syndrome) can be improved through therapy based on vitamin B12 and folic acid.
Myalgic encephalomyelitis, or ME, has some of the same characteristics as fibromyalgia. Fibromyalgia is best described as chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain. However, it also involves fatigue, stiffness, and numbness in certain body parts, along with headaches, sleep disorders, and mood changes. Both fibromyalgia and myalgic encephalomyelitis can impact a person’s ability to carry out daily tasks, thus lowering the quality of life. Continue reading…
Irritable bowel syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome, and anorexia nervosa may have a common origin: Study
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), and anorexia nervosa may have a common origin. The findings from the study uncovered that all three disorders may be caused by antibodies to the body’s nerve cells mistaken for an infection.
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Dr. Jim Morrison, Dr. Sue Broughton, and Dr. Quenton Wessels, the authors of the study, wrote, “Psychological factors might be important, but are unconvincing as the primary or major cause. There might, for instance, be an increased incidence of physical and sexual abuse in childhood in those who go on to manifest functional disorders. It is easy to see how this could influence symptoms in adults, but it stretches credulity to imagine abuse as the sole and sufficient cause of the functional disorder.” Continue reading…
Visual stress: Potential symptom of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS)
Visual stress has been found to be a possible symptom of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Researchers found those who suffer from CFS experience higher levels of visual stress.
CFS – or myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) – is characterized by persistent exhaustion that remains even after sleep or rest. Diagnosis of CFS can be difficult as symptoms often overlap with many other conditions.
The research team examined patients with and without chronic fatigue syndrome and found that those with CFS had higher rates of visual stress. Visual stress is exhaustion and discomfort caused by looking at repetitive striped patterns – for example, reading text. The results of the study could better help diagnose CFS because the visual abnormalities found by researchers could be an easier, more measurable marker of CFS. Continue reading…
