Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Fatigue used to be considered only a symptom, but in the last decade or so, chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) has become one of the nation's most controversial illnesses. Depending on whom you talk to, this disease either doesn't exist at all or it's an epidemic.

All sorts of things have been fingered as causes: allergies, food intolerances, drug reactions, yeast infection, psychological problems and chronic infection with the Epstein-Barr virus (the culprit that causes mononucleosis), just to name a few.

According to some estimates, 3 million Americans--90 million people worldwide--suffer from the well-defined group of symptoms that seem to be associated with CFS. These symptoms, doctors say, include profound lethargy not alleviated by sleep, plus depression, headache, fevers, malaise, memory loss, mental confusion, poor concentration, pain and weakness of the joints and muscles, recurring infections, severe exhaustion from minor activities, sore throat, stomach distress and swollen lymph glands. Oddly enough, even the people who have all of these symptoms do not appear to be sick--doctors find little, if anything, wrong during a physical exam, and laboratory tests frequently fail to find any abnormalities.

The National Institutes of Health estimates that the people who are most at risk for CFS are white, middle-class women.

I believe CFS is a very real condition. I also agree with many experts in the field that it's very confusing. Any number of infections, allergies, foods, drugs, nutritional deficiencies and other illnesses might contribute to it. Because CFS is so multifaceted, I shy away from anyone who claims to understand completely the cause or the cure.

I'd advise anyone with chronic fatigue to find a good physician who understands the condition and follow the doctor's advice to help explore all possible causes. To see what helps and what hurts you, by all means have your doctor test you for allergies, including food allergies.

One more note before we get to the herbs: Almost every CFS expert recommends trying a whole-food, vegetarian or near-vegetarian diet to see if it helps. Even if it doesn't cure your fatigue, it should reduce your risk of heart disease, cancer, obesity, high blood pressure and many other serious conditions. And any of these conditions will certainly contribute to chronic fatigue, even if they don't cause it.

Green Pharmacy for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

There are a number of herbs that may prove helpful.

Assorted antiviral herbs. Several herbalists I respect claim to relieve chronic fatigue successfully in a high percentage of people with combinations of antiviral herbs: echinacea, goldenseal, licorice, lemon balm (also known as melissa) and ginger. I think this approach is worth a try. You can make a blend of equal amounts of these herbs or use varying amounts, adjusting the blend to your personal taste. Make a tea using a teaspoon or two of your favorite blend and have a cup two or three times a day. Such herb teas can be energizing.

Asian ginseng (Panax ginseng) and Siberian ginseng (Eleutherococcus senticosus). Commission E, the group of scientists that advises the German government about herbs, endorses ginseng "as a tonic to combat feelings of lassitude and debility, lack of energy and ability to concentrate, and during convalescence." The suggested daily dose is about one teaspoon steeped in a cup of boiling water to make a tea.

Clinical studies indicate that ginseng improves athletic performance, although it takes up to a month of regular use to notice this herb's benefits. Ginseng also stimulates the immune system, an effect that's been repeatedly confirmed in experiments with animals.

Revered in Asia for thousands of years as an energy-boosting tonic, ginseng is used today by Russian cosmonauts and Asian Olympic athletes as an "adaptogen," an herb that increases general resistance to all types of stress. It does this in addition to reducing fatigue and improving alertness, coordination, memory and stress-coping abilities.

Some years ago, a co-worker asked if there were any caffeine in an "energy preparation" that he was taking to combat fatigue. The formula included damiana, ginseng, royal jelly and saw palmetto. He said it was really helping him, but he was afraid it was getting him up earlier in the morning. And when he woke up, he said, he had a tremendous urge to go to work.

Nope, I told him, no caffeine in there. But I added that ginseng can be quite a stimulant. I told him to keep taking it and to get up and work whenever the urge struck him. (Don't let that energy go to waste.)

Asian Ginseng A root primarily imported from China and Korea, this type of ginseng won mythic renown for increasing longevity.

Mate (Ilex paraguayensis). Commission E approves using one to two teaspoons a day in tea for banishing mental and physical fatigue. Most of mate's energy-boosting activity comes from its caffeine content. While it may be good as an occasional picker-upper, however, I wouldn't recommend taking it daily to treat CFS.

Purslane (Portulaca oleracea) and other foods containing magnesium. People who advocate juicing for health often stress the importance of getting magnesium from greens to boost stamina and energy. If you want to get more magnesium, try purslane, string beans, spinach, cowpeas, lettuce, stinging nettle, poppy seeds, licorice root and coriander.

You could just take a magnesium supplement (the Daily Value is 400 milligrams), but personally, I'd much rather eat a purslane/string bean/spinach salad with poppyseed dressing. With supplements, you get one mineral or a few plant chemicals (phytochemicals), but with whole herbs, you get every therapeutic phytochemical in the plant--possibly hundreds.

Spinach (Spinacia oleracea) and other foods containing folate. Although I prefer to recommend that you get your vitamins and minerals from foods rather than supplements, deficiencies of folate (the naturally occurring form of folic acid) are quite common, and you might need a folic acid supplement. The average American consumes only 61 percent of the Daily Value of 400 micrograms of folate. Whether or not you take a supplement, however, don't neglect good food sources such as spinach, pinto beans, asparagus, broccoli, okra and brussels sprouts.

Wheatgrass (Agropyron, various species) and other grasses. Juice advocates often recommend wheatgrass juice for fatigue. Personally, I think any juiced wholesome grass, including barley, oats, couchgrass or wheat, would be helpful.