Dr. Jacob
Teitelbaum's Vitality 101 for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome & Fibromyalgia - The
Biochemistry of Feeling Great
03-29-2004
Editor's note: Used with permission from Dr. Teitelbaum's new book "Three
Steps to Happiness-Healing Through Joy!" This is Chapter 10.
By Jacob Teitelbaum, M.D.
We are all a combination of matter and energy. We have talked about the energy
parts of our being. We have discussed how the mind can create our reality and
how we can take charge of its programming instead of having it simply react to
outside programming and experience. We also spoke about how emotions and
feelings are our soul's guidance system; how keeping our attention on and doing
what feels good helps us get to where we truly want to go and be who we truly
are. Now it is time to discuss the physical factors that can powerfully
contribute to your feeling great.
Even though these physical factors may seem obvious, it does not hurt to start
with the basics. There are four foundations for keeping your body vital and healthy:
1. Feed it properly.
2. Use it.
3. Rest it adequately.
4. Follow your bliss.
I have already talked about following your bliss (this is referring to earlier
chapters in the book). Now let's look at the other three foundations in more
detail.
1. Feed it properly. Your body needs several things:
A. Get enough water. Not drinking enough water is a very serious and commonly
overlooked problem. Chronic stress can suppress a master gland in the brain
(called the hypothalamus). This can make it harder to hold on to water because
of a drop in anti-diuretic ("anti-
peeing") hormone and your need for water then increases.
Take a moment to notice if your mouth or lips are dry. Most of you will find
that they are dry. If so, you are dehydrated and need to drink more water.
Although it is not unusual for those of us under stress to require a gallon of
water a day, I do not recommend counting the number of glasses of water that
you drink per day because this can get old fairly quickly. Simply notice if your
mouth or lips are dry and drink water when they are. I like to keep a glass or
bottle of good quality water with me. Water tastes good, gives pleasure, and
can be a major energy booster when you are dragging.
In addition, many problems have been associated with even mild dehydration.
These problems include fatigue, indigestion, and asthma to name a few. More
information on dehydration can be found in the book, Your Body's Many Cries For
Water, by F. Batmanghelidj, M.D.
Drinking sodas or coffee will simply make the problem worse. The amount of
sugar in one can of soda can suppress your immune system by about thirty
percent for three to four hours. It also can aggravate hypoglycemia (see
below), and likely increases the risk of diabetes. I recommend that you limit
caffeine intake to one cup (8 to
problem, but research suggests that tea is much healthier than coffee in the
long run.
Unfortunately, I do not believe that the American water supply is in very good
shape, despite governmental claims to the contrary. Sadly, much bottled water
is not necessarily better than tap water. Water filters can be iffy as well.
The National Sanitation Foundation
(NSF) sets standards for filter effectiveness. Before you purchase a water
filter, it is reasonable to see how it meets NSF standards.
The filter that I have found to be most effective is made by Multi- pure.
Multi-pure filters can be obtained from Bren Jacobson at 410- 224-4877. I would
note that I do not accept money from anyone or any company whose products I
recommend.
B. Get proper nutrition. Giving your body proper nutritional support is
critical to being happy and feeling good. As the old saying goes,you are what
you eat. On the other hand, worrying about everything you eat can make you
crazy and neither promotes health or happiness.
I do recommend that you considerably limit the amount of sugar you eat. This
does not mean giving up chocolate or treats. It means keeping those things that
give you the most pleasure. Simply get a small portion of your favorite sweets,
walk away from the serving dish, and savor and enjoy it thoroughly with no
guilt. If you feel guilty about eating something, you will likely
"inhale" the whole portion before you ever really taste it. I would
avoid things without much benefit like sodas that have large amounts of sugar
(approximately ten spoonfuls per
Natural sweeteners, such as Stevia, can be substituted and appear to be quite
safe and healthy. I also think that saccharin (in reasonable amounts) is fairly
safe if you cannot buy Stevia, but I
am concerned about the safety of Aspartame.
Besides avoiding excess sugar and caffeine, recognize that it is normally
healthier to eat foods that are less processed and still contain the original
vitamins, minerals, and enzymes. Also remember that eating food that is fun and
leaves you feeling good (from a centered place) is also a very healthy thing to
do. There is no one diet that is best for everyone, or even best for any given
person throughout their whole lifetime. So listen to your body-it will tell you
what it likes and does not like. Simply remember to check in with your body a
few hours later so you can tell if the food really made you feel good or if it
was simply a craving or addiction.
Indigestion is also rampant. Interestingly, this usually comes from poor
digestion-not too much stomach acid! The enzymes present in food are critical
for proper digestion. The enzymes that digest our food are also what ripen
them. Because of this ripening, food
manufacturers learned decades ago that they could extend the shelf life of food
from one week to as long as a decade by destroying the enzymes present in the
food. This was wonderful for the food processing industry but, unfortunately, I
suspect it is a major cause of the indigestion that is epidemic today.
Acid-lowering medications like Prilosec and Nexium are not best sellers because
one makes too much stomach acid.
If this were the case, we would need less of these medications as our stomach
acid production decreased with age. On the contrary, it is poor digestion that
results in any stomach acid being irritating.
Turning off stomach acid will turn off the pain, but it further worsens
digestion and nutritional status.
I suggest that people take digestive enzymes. When taking enzymes, you will
find that your digestion improves dramatically, as well as your overall sense of
well-being. In addition, your body's digestive enzymes do not work well in cold
temperatures. If you have indigestion, drink sips of warm water instead of cold
liquids with your meals.
There are over fifty different nutrients that are critical to your well-being
and many of these are low in the Standard American Diet, appropriately
abbreviated SAD. No matter how hard people try, it is difficult to get optimum
nutrition from the SAD diet. Yearly, the average American gets about one
hundred and fifty pounds each of sugar and flour added to their diet in food
processing. This means that approximately one-third of your caloric intake has
been
stripped of most of its nutritional value.
Combined with food processing and the increase in nutritional needs because of
the stress seen in day-to-day American life (e.g., infections, pollution, toxic
chemicals, toxic people, etc.) many people are at high risk for feeling awful.
It frustrated me that people needed to take over twenty tablets of supplements
a day to optimize their basic nutritional status.
The most critical functions of these nutrients include:
Fueling your energy system. The B-vitamins make up the backbone of energy production and transport. In addition,
magnesium is a key player in hundreds of critical reactions in the body and is
markedly suboptimal in most Western diets. Many other nutrients, including
Malic Acid (which comes from apples), folate, and several amino acids are also
critical for your energy systems to work well.
Supporting a happy and healthy mind. "Brain fog" is becoming an
increasing problem in our society. The B-vitamins, especially B-1 and B-12 are
critical for mental clarity. Inositol also helps promote being calm and can be
especially helpful for those who are anxious. Many amino acids (proteins) are
critical for adequate neurotransmitter levels (e.g., serotonin, dopamine, and
epinephrine). Deficiencies of these amino acids and neurotransmitters, as well
as many vitamins and minerals, can commonly cause depression. I suspect you
will be amazed at how much happier you feel when you get adequate nutritional
support.
Proper tissue repair and function. Being in chronic pain will not help you to
feel good. Any of a number of nutritional deficiencies will trigger chronic
muscle shortening and pain. Many of you will find that chronic pain problems go
away when you get eight hours of deep sleep a night and take the nutritional
support needed for your muscles to heal and relax. The same nutrients may
dramatically improve your hair, nail, and skin quality. Treating infections and
hormonal deficiencies (see below) is also critical if one wants to eliminate
chronic pain.
Infection and cancer fighting. Many nutrients are critical for proper immune
function. Chronic low-grade infections are very common in Americans these days.
These include everything from chronic sinusitis to fungal overgrowth in the
bowels, skin, nails, and elsewhere. If you have a diagnosis of spastic colon
you probably have a bowel infection that your doctor may not know how to look
for. Vitamin C (e.g., 200-500mg a day), vitamin A, zinc, selenium,
and folate are only a few of the nutrients that are critical for immune system
support. Most people do not get optimal amounts of these nutrients.
Other critical nutrient functions include (among many others) maintaining
healthy blood vessels to prevent heart attacks and strokes, maintaining proper
hormonal balances, maintaining healthy bones, and preventing birth defects.
As you can see, adequate nutritional support is critical to feeling good. Be
especially sure to get at least 50mg of B-complex vitamins and 500mg of vitamin
C daily, as well as minerals such as 200mg of magnesium (as the glycinate),
15mg of zinc, 200mcg of selenium, and
150mcg of iodine. Adequate protein (eggs, beans, rice, nuts, and corn are good
sources) and essential fatty acids from fish (at least three serving a week of
tuna, salmon, herring, or sardines-or
the primrose oil only needs to be taken the week before your period.
Eggs or whole grain cereals can make a healthy and quick breakfast. There are
wonderful Chinese, Mexican, Japanese, Italian, etc.,meals, too. Use common
sense. You do not have to eat junk from fast food restaurants.
C. Treat hormonal deficiencies. If you are tired, achy, have weight gain,
and/or cold intolerance you probably have an under active thyroid gland and can
feel better if treated with natural prescription thyroid (I prefer Armour thyroid).
Fatigue associated with hypoglycemia (sudden anxiety relieved with eating) and
low blood pressure often responds to supporting your adrenal (stress) glands.
Taking 1000mg of vitamin-B-5 twice a day (Pantothenic acid), 100mg of Panax
ginseng twice a day, plus vitamin-C can help your adrenals heal as can natural
hormone treatments. Estrogen deficiency often manifests itself by your feeling
worse in the week before your
period, with poor sleep, brain fog, achiness, and loss of libido. If these symptoms
are present, along with hot flashes and decreased vaginal lubrication, a trial
of natural estrogen and progesterone (not the dangerous "horse
estrogens") may be warranted. Low libido and depression are also common
with testosterone deficiency in both men and women. It is important to note
that blood tests will miss most cases of hormonal deficiency. There is an old
saying, "Treat the patient-not the blood test."
2. Use your body properly.
A. Get fresh air and exercise. We sometimes forget how important fresh air and
exercise are to our well-being. Research has shown that exercise is as
effective in elevating mood and treating depression as Prozac. The good news is
that you do not get side effects (e.g., sexual dysfunction) or the
"sticker shock" that goes along with taking these antidepressants.
Exercising outside in order to get fresh air can make a big difference when
weather and air
quality conditions allow.
Exercise has many beneficial effects. Beyond its overall effects on
conditioning, weight loss, and decreased risk of heart disease and other
degenerative diseases, exercise also raises endorphin levels.
These are your body's natural opioids and make you feel good (which is where
the expression "runner's high" literally comes from). In addition,
exercise raises growth hormone. This is a critical hormone that drops as we get
older. It is taken by many people to help them
stay young. The problem is that it costs $12,000 a year to take growth hormone
injections. Exercise is a much less expensive way to get the same effect. Other
ways to raise growth hormone include getting deep sleep and great sex (see
below).
Do not run out and try to make up for lost time. Begin with walking as far as
you comfortably can. Remember, "No pain, no gain" is stupid. Pain is
your body's way of saying, "Don't do that." Walk so that you feel
`good tired' at the end of the walk and then better the next day. You can then
increase your walking by one minute each day as long as it continues to feel
good to do so. When you are up to one hour of walking a day, you can begin to
increase the
intensity with exercises like bike riding, rowing, etc. I do not recommend
jogging on hard surfaces because I think this is not healthy for our
musculo-skeletal system. Use your will-power to go out and begin the exercise.
Then focus on having fun (I used to jog to the Haagen-Dazs ice cream store).
Feel free to "stop and smell the roses," blow on dandelions, or
whatever feels good along the way. In addition, find a friend to exercise with
on a regular
schedule. Otherwise, there is a tendency to come up with silly excuses to not
exercise.
B. Have great sex. The approach in this book can help increase your libido and
get you back in touch with your natural passion, which is pretty powerful (that
is why there are so many rules trying to rein it in). In addition, a study by
scientists at
C. Make time for yourself and loved ones. We get so busy in our lives that we sometimes forget who is
important to us. While lecturing away from home on September 11, 2001, I
learned an important lesson. Despite phone lines being jammed, I knew exactly
who I needed to check in with. These were the people that I wanted to have with
me for the rest of my life. Sometimes we take these special people for granted.
Be sure to make time to spend with them.
As you continue to do the three steps we talk about in this book,you will find
that you spend less time with people whose company you do not enjoy, and more
time with those who it feels good to be with.
One of the most important people for you to be with is yourself! We en forget
to make "self-time." Hundreds of years ago, before light bulbs were
developed, sleep often lasted twelve hours a day beginning with when it became
dark. People would usually fall asleep for a few hours and then wake up for two
hours before going back to sleep. This time was spent in lovemaking or for
being with one's self. It was a time to explore dreams, feelings, and generally
reconnect with one's self. This self-time is very precious. When it comes to
self-time, be sure you "pay yourself first." This brings us to the
third foundation for staying vital.
3. Rest your body adequately.
A. Get enough sleep. To many of you, the idea of eight hours of sleep a day may
seem absurd and decadent. Even one hundred years ago, however, when we began to
become industrialized, the average American was getting nine hours of sleep a
night. Then light bulbs
were developed. We are now down to six and one-half to seven hours of sleep a
night on the average, and this is not adequate for most people. In addition,
the quality of our sleep has suffered.
I discussed above how stress can cause hypothalamic suppression and therefore
increased thirst. Your hypothalamus also controls your ability to sleep and
your hormonal system. As stress increases in our society (along with the use of
caffeine and other stimulants),
insomnia and inadequate sleep have become epidemic. Inadequate sleep then
causes fatigue, "brain fog," immune suppression, and general
irritability.
This is another example of "pay yourself first." Start to make time
to get eight hours of sleep a night. If you are a new mother, it may be best to
have the baby in a bassinet or in bed next to you for the first six months so
that middle of the night feedings become easier.
Despite sensationalized worries about keeping a baby in our beds (everything we
do or don't do carries some risk), having the baby sleep in your bed is normal
in pre-industrialized cultures. It is suspected that the normal movements that
occurred by the parents being in bed with the baby decreased the risk of sudden
infant death syndrome. It also allows the mother to nurse more easily without
having to fully wake up in the middle of the night. If you do wake
up with a baby during the night, be sure to take naps during the day when the
baby is sleeping. This is more important than catching up on housework and may
prevent post-partum Fibromyalgia.
In addition to the insomnia caused by stress, we are seeing an increase in
sleep disorders such as sleep apnea and restless leg syndrome. Sleep apnea is
associated with loud snoring, followed by gasping for breath as the airway
closes, during which time the person is unable to breathe. This is similar to
having a pillow over your head thirty to fifty times a night until the lack of
oxygen wakes you up enough to force you to breathe deeply. Sleep apnea is more
common in those who are markedly overweight, have high blood pressure, have a
shirt collar size over 16.5, or have sleepiness during the day. A history of
falling asleep at the wheel while driving is much more common in people with
sleep apnea.
Although machines and masks that keep the airway inflated can treat sleep apnea
effectively, only one out of four people are able to tolerate these
"C-PAP" machines. Most others find it too obtrusive.
A much more effective way to treat sleep apnea is weight loss-even ten to
fifteen pounds of weight loss can help dramatically. In addition, in many
people sleep apnea occurs mostly while they are lying on their backs. If this
is the case, putting a tennis ball into a pocket that is then sewn into the
"small of the back" of the pijama top can take care of the problem.
When the person lies on their back, it becomes uncomfortable, so they roll on
to their side.
As our society becomes heavier, sleep apnea is becoming more common.
Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS) is another common problem that interferes with
sleep. RLS is when your legs keep jumping or moving throughout the night.
Because of this restlessness, even though you may be unconscious for eight
hours a night, you feel like you have
run a marathon. This results in very poor quality sleep. Many nutritional
deficiencies, especially iron deficiency, can trigger RLS. Our normal ranges
for blood tests miss very clinically significant nutritional or hormonal
deficiencies. This has been documented in a number of studies, including my own
research.Natural remedies can also help many people with RLS and insomnia in
general.
What natural approaches can help me sleep?
It is, of course, important to begin with proper sleep hygiene. Your bed should
be used for sleeping and lovemaking, not problem solving and work. Develop a
routine of going to bed at the same time each evening. Your body will then be
trained to fall asleep. In addition,
avoid stimulants like coffee before bedtime. Alcohol, while sedating you, will
worsen the quality of your sleep. If you have trouble sleeping, do not leave
your clock where you can see it. "Clock watching" is
counterproductive.
Most sleeping pills actually worsen sleep quality by keeping you in light sleep
(called Stage 2) that does not "recharge your batteries."
Fortunately, many natural remedies can be very helpful for sleep, are not
addictive, and are well-tolerated. These remedies include valerian, hops,
L-theanine, wild lettuce, Jamaican dogwood, and passionflower. In addition,
these other natural remedies may be added and are also helpful for sleep:
200-300mg of magnesium (in the glycinate form-less if it causes diarrhea), 500
to 1000mg of calcium, 300mg of 5-HTP (less if you are on antidepressants-note
that 5-HTP takes six weeks to work), Kava Kava (may very rarely cause severe
liver problems, so do not use it if you have liver problems), 80 to 160mg of
lemon balm, and/or 1 to 4gm of tryptophan (a prescription amino acid). If you
have trouble staying in deep sleep, there are also CDs that are made to
purposely help increase
these stages of deep, restorative sleep.
Tired, achy, have brain fog, and can't sleep? If so, you probably have a
process related to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and/or Fibromyalgia. These
syndromes are now VERY treatable. For those of you would like more information
on effective treatment of these
syndromes, visit my Web site at www.endfatigue.com. The site includes a very sophisticated interactive computer program
that can analyze your medical history and blood tests. The program can help
determine which treatments (both natural and prescription- although
it can now be done entirely without prescription) are most likely to work in
your specific case if you have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome,Fibromyalgia, or
chronic fatigue and pain in general. It will then teach you how to use the
treatments. The web site has many tools that can be accessed at no charge, and
can help you get your life back! My book, From Fatigued to Fantastic!, also has
much more information on treating these problems.
To summarize, supporting your body can help improve mood, increase energy, and
decrease pain:
1. Feed it properly.
A. Get plenty of good, quality water. If your mouth or lips are dry, you are
dehydrated.
B. Eat what makes you feel good. This usually means avoiding sugar and eating
food that is not overly processed. The average American diet is awful. An
excellent, once a day,nutritional supplement can be very helpful.
2. Use it.
A. Get exercise and fresh air. Do not push to pain or exhaustion.
B. Have a full and satisfying sex life.
C. Spend fun time with those you love-especially yourself.
3. Rest it adequately.
A. Get eight hours of sleep a night. Natural remedies can help.
4. Follow your Bliss!
Remember: That which makes you feel good (from a centered place) is usually
good for you!
Used with permission from Dr Teitelbaum's new book "Three Steps to
Happiness-Healing Through Joy!"
Dr. Teitelbaum is a board certified internist and director of the
Syndrome and Fibromyalgia -- a Placebo-controlled Study". He lectures
internationally. He is also the author of the best-selling book From Fatigued
to Fantastic! and the recently released Three Steps to Happiness! Healing
through Joy. His web site can be found
at: www.Vitality101.com.