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Health & Healing Articles
CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) ... imaginary or real?
Colin Ifield
In May this year, one of our readers wrote: "On each distribution of the local magazine the "Glenorian" I find myself immediately turning first to your informative column and wish to express my appreciation for your articles. Your subject in the April, 2004 issue particularly interested me as it touched on one symptom I live with daily, being lymphatic blockage." She goes on to say that she suffers CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) and MCS (Multiple Chemical Sensitivities) and that she has been incapacitated and confined to bed for many years. She believes that her condition resulted from exposure to toxic chemicals. Not too surprising really, when we consider that we are constantly bombarded with toxins in the food we eat and drink and in the air that we breathe. Recently, the use of fire retardant materials in our homes, furniture and clothing has been questioned as a possible health hazard.
The reader went on to say that she has difficulty understanding why people can accept that a person can have an intolerance to peanut butter, bee stings, etc. but cannot accept her condition as being genuine.
Many people (including medical practitioners) believe that CFS is all in the mind and according to one medical publication: "many orthodox medical practitioners prescribe anti-depressant drugs for the treatment of CFS, even though Double-blind clinical trials have concluded that anti-depressant drugs do NOT alleviate any of the symptoms of CFS. In fact the trials showed that it causes patients to experience tremor and excessive perspiration." So, is it imaginary? There is much evidence to suggest that it is not and that it may be caused by many influences such as exposure to toxic chemicals, diseases such as glandular fever and may also be caused by other health conditions.
CFS is described as involving constant, disabling fatigue that is not relieved by bed rest. There is presently no agreement within medical or naturopathic disciplines, as to the cause of CFS. It affects 0.3% to 1.0% of the population of western nations and primarily afflicts (white) women between the ages 25 and 45 (it occurs in women 1½ times more often than it occurs in men).
On the up side, there is clinical evidence that some natural dietary supplements, such as oleuropein (olive leaf extract), can alleviate the symptoms. Many sufferers have reported success with remedies and self-healing treatments such as Ayurvedic medicine, Private Subconscious-mind Healing (PSH) and Body Psychotherapy. This leads us to conclude that healing can be initiated through the mind or the body. As we said in the October issue of the Glenorian, we often hear people talk of the mental/physical connection or the body/mind connection but, whatever we call it, it's the same thing. The mind and body are made up of the same materials and are governed and controlled, to a large extent, by chemical make up.
The word "syndrome" is commonly used when there is no currently known cause of the ailment and is used in the description of many "accepted" ailments. So let us not judge as imaginary, that which we do not understand.
This article is intended to be informative and interactive. Readers are invited to participate, by writing to us with their thoughts or comments and to request topics of interest, relating to health issues.
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