More Than Sick of Salt

All posts by joeobiso

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS)

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is also called myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME).  It is a challenge to physicians both to diagnosis and treat.  It is believed the prevalence is approximately 1% in the general population.

The cause of ME/CFS is unknown.  Its mechanism of causing disease is also unknown.  It is actually an independent unique disease.  No two patients have the same type of symptoms and the associated circumstances vary among individuals.  In addition, there was no consistent diagnostic criteria.  Over the last 30 years, diagnostic criteria have continuously changed.  This is because, as mentioned, there are no unique features of the disease that make for a set pattern.

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The Six-Prong Lifestyle

We have recently developed a six-prong lifestyle and supplement approach for treatment of autonomic dysfunction. This includes patients with chronic fatigue, chronic muscle aches, sweating disorders, significant dizziness on standing up, brain fog, and many orthostatic intolerance symptoms. The six-prong approach incorporates principals of biochemistries and theories of biological feasibility. It is partly based on valuable information through medical literature, including many significant studies. The program basically promotes wellness and is not used to diagnose or treat specific diseases. We do not use a combination of commonly used pharmacologic agents such as statins and cholesterol-lowering agents, or antihypertensive prescription agents in this program, but that is left to the discretion of the treating physicians. Various nutraceuticals including vitamins, minerals and potent antioxidants are used. The antioxidants that we use are alpha lipoic acid, coenzyme Q10 and L-carnitine. We also use a nitric oxide-boosting supplemental approach with beet root extract, which operates through nitric oxide and amino acid precursors L-arginine and L-citrulline, which we also use. The concentrations that we have used we have found empirically to cause less side-effects and still give feelings of well-being and efficacy to our patients. Again, we emphasize that we do not use these supplements to diagnose or treat disease.

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Overview of the Autonomic Nervous System

The nervous system comprises the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS) components. The peripheral nervous system (PNS) is composted of three parts: the somatic, autonomic and enteric. The somatic portion functions to control voluntary movement, while the autonomic and enteric function involuntarily to control various bodily functions. The autonomic nervous system (ANS) controls homeostasis of the entire body, which includes the cardiovascular activity, digestion, urination, sexual function, sweating, sleep, and ability to maintain upright position.  Many physicians, including ourselves, consider the enteric nervous system (ENS) as actually a part of the ANS, and it is the most independent functioning of the components of the ANS. It controls gastrointestinal function (secretion and peristalsis).

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