Digestive Wellness: Strengthen the Immune System and Prevent Disease Through Healthy Digestion, Fourth Edition (132 page)

There aren’t any panaceas for CFIDS, but there are therapies that can gradually help restore people to health. It’s important to address detoxification, viral load, digestive function, dysbiosis (including candida and parasites), mitochondrial function, intestinal flora, environmental contaminants, heavy metals, underlying allergies, and hormone imbalances (especially thyroid and adrenal), as well as to restore functioning of the immune system. If this seems daunting, it can be. The causes and specifics are different for each person. Careful partnership between practitioner and patient will give the very best results. CFIDS is one area in which conventional, mainstream medicine has little to offer. If you’ve tried everything that your doctor has recommended and still aren’t any better, you need to broaden your approach.

Restoration of digestive competency and nutrition go a long way toward normalizing CFIDS. Work with a nutritionally oriented health professional to design a
program that meets your specific needs. The first steps are discovering any underlying problems that aggravate and drive the condition using the tests listed. It’s important to check carefully for parasites; one study found giardia in 28 percent of subjects with CFIDS. Develop and follow a diet based on foods that are healthful for you and a nutrient-rich program designed to boost immune, brain, and cellular function. When you are ready, add exercise, a little bit at a time. People with CFIDS often feel worse after exercise, so go slowly. Several researchers link elevated cytokines and TNF-alpha and low levels of antioxidants and heat shock proteins in people with chronic fatigue. Increasing anti-inflammatory nutrients and antioxidants could be really beneficial. (See
Chapter 9
on inflammation and the immune system.)

Physical therapy, counseling, occupational therapy, acupuncture, chi gong, Emotional Freedom Technique, and mind-body techniques can all be of great benefit.

The biological, rather than medical, approach to chronic fatigue saves money and works better. In one study of cost-effectiveness it was determined that a nutritional approach costs $2,000 compared to $10,000 for a medical approach. The patients on nutritional programs reported greater improvements in function and subjective well-being. They were able to significantly reduce the amount of medication they used.

Comprehensive digestive stool analysis with parasitology

Testing for food, environmental, mold, and chemical sensitivities

Food allergy testing

Liver function profile

Intestinal permeability screening

Organic acid testing

Blood analysis for nutrients

Fatty acid analysis

After testing, you’ll have a better idea of any underlying problems. Look up related sections in this book to help you with the specifics.

Investigate food and environmental sensitivities.
Try an elimination diet. Use shampoos, soaps, and toiletries that are hypoallergenic for your specific needs and natural household cleaning products that are healthier for you, your family, and the environment. Some people are sensitive to their mattresses, gas stoves, carpeting, and upholstery. If you are, you may need to wear 100 percent cotton or other natural fiber clothes and use 100 percent cotton sheets and blankets.
Cotton is one of the largest genetically engineered crops, and some people are so sensitive to manmade substances that they can tolerate only organic cotton. Work with a health professional who can help you thread your way through the details.

Try an alkalizing diet.
See
Chapter 17
for details.

Supplement with probiotics.
Supplemental use of beneficial bacteria can make a tremendous difference in your ability to digest foods. Beneficial flora can help reestablish the normal microbial balance in your intestinal tract. A recent study of people with CFIDS found that 6 of the 15 participants reported cognitive improvements in the four-week study.