“He also drank shark liver oil each day…”

-Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea

Because most germs thrive in an acidic and low oxygenated body, we can make the terrain harder on them by eating and supplementing in ways that will make our bodies more alkaline and more oxygenated.  Germanium is a supplement that increases oxygen in the body. Another aid is shark liver oil. The essential fatty acids and squalene in this oil help to transfer oxygen from the lungs into the cells, where it is needed for protection against viruses and other organisms. 

Alkylglycerol (AKG) is another substance found in shark liver oil.  This substance can stimulate Th1 cells that have been shut down by germs tricking the immune system. AKGs are in mother’s milk. It is the key substance that provides infants with natural protection and immunity against infection and the reason that breast fed babies have a greater resistance to disease than bottle-fed ones. Shark liver oil, which contains the highest concentration known to man of AKGs, has 1000 times more alkylglycerol than mother’s milk.

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I had no idea that so many of my problems were being caused by vitamin and mineral deficiencies. If you are thinking to yourself that this article in the Take Control of Your Fibromyalgia Series doesn’t apply to you because you eat a well-balanced diet and take supplements, think again. Even if you are getting more than adequate nutrition, you can still be deficient due to toxins blocking the action of nutrients in the body. (The source of these toxins may surprise you.)

Some things you have to do every day. Eating seven apples on Saturday night instead of one a day just isn’t going to get the job done.
-Jim Rohn

A magnesium deficiency is considered to be one of the most common, but treatable, causes of disease. An estimated 72% of Americans are not getting enough magnesium. (Learn more at http://www.mgwater.com/articles.shtml#Americans.) Low magnesium levels are associated with several autoimmune disorders including Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, arthritis, Raynaud’s phenomenon, and asthma. Reduced levels are also thought to be the reason for muscle pain in SLE (Lupus) patients. A magnesium deficiency is connected to a host of other health conditions including: migraines, heart disease, mitral valve prolapse, sleep disturbances, over-sensitivity to light and noise, autism, depression, anxiety, PMS, and kidney stones. Insufficient magnesium causes an increase in a body chemical called substance P, which is responsible for pain perception. In other words, you will hurt more if you don’t have enough magnesium. Fibromyalgia sufferers have on average three times more Substance P than normal.

Magnesium is involved in thyroid production and protein synthesis. Magnesium is also necessary in the production of stomach acid and digestive enzymes, which are deficient in people with autoimmune disease. It is a powerful weapon in the autoimmune protection arsenal because magnesium can lower cytokine levels.

Cytokines cause many fibromyalgia symptoms. In the brain, cytokines can cause behavioral changes. They can either prompt or worsen depression, anxiety, or anorexia. They may cause a person to become withdrawn. Cytokines create fatigue and interfere with sleep patterns. They are one thing responsible for what has been termed “brain fog.”

While this mineral is no cure-all by any means, magnesium has been shown to relieve muscle pain and fatigue in individuals with Fibromyalgia. Magnesium is often given in combination with malic acid. (Learn more at http://www.gettingwell.com/drug_info/nmdrugprofiles/nutsupdrugs/mal_0292.shtml.)

Note: This practice has been criticized by some alternative medicine practitioners as unsafe.

In a six month 1995 study, patients with Fibromyalgia were given a daily dose of 200 mg of malic acid and 50 mg of magnesium. Patients who participated showed significant reduction in pain and tenderness.

More contributing factors to magnesium deficiency are stress and sleep deprivation. Vitamin B deficiencies, especially B12, can lead to the inability of the body to utilize magnesium, even when it is getting adequate amounts. Surprisingly enough, even loud noises can decrease magnesium availability, so turn the radio down.

The Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of magnesium is 400mg. Dietary sources of magnesium include whole grains, nuts, seeds, cocoa, green vegetables, seafood, brown rice, and kidney and lima beans.

Note: Do not take extra magnesium if you have kidney disease because it is the kidneys that process the magnesium.

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Despite being inflammatory, coffee has had its medicinal purposes. My own ancestors used it to treat asthma. I have friends outside the U.S., who are still dependent upon coffee to treat asthma. Certain caffeine-type chemicals in coffee have been proven effective at stimulating bronchial dilation in people diagnosed with specific types of asthma. Some modern day asthma medications are even made from chemicals in the caffeine family.

For those using coffee as a natural asthma medication, you should keep in mind that caffeine is a toxic chemical. Its purpose in plant life is to act as an insecticide. In people, caffeine suppresses the enzymes needed for memory making. It also raises both blood sugar and insulin levels, causing cytokine production and aggravating diabetes.

Cytokines also cause many fibromyalgia symptoms. In the brain, cytokines can cause behavioral changes. They can either prompt or worsen depression, anxiety, or anorexia. They may cause a person to become withdrawn. Cytokines create fatigue and interfere with sleep patterns. They are one thing responsible for what has been termed “brain fog.”

Simply drinking decaffeinated coffee isn’t the answer either. Women who drink more than one cup a day of decaffeinated coffee are considered at a much higher risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis. The theory is that chemically decaffeinated products are causing the increased risk of autoimmunity. If you are going to drink decaffeinated coffee anyway, be sure that it uses a non-chemical based decaffeinating method and that the coffee was organically grown. Those who do not drink organic coffee, are exposed to too many man-made pesticides.

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How much control can you actually have over autoimmunity and fibromyalgia? Let’s consider “the sunburn analogy”.

When was the last time that you had a sunburn? At that time, did you consider your sunburn a terrible disease over which you had no control? Of course not! Most likely you accepted the sunburn as a natural consequence to prolonged sun exposure. Although painful, the burn was not a mysterious malady of unknown origin, but your body doing exactly what it was designed to do under those particular circumstances. I am sure you realize that the answer to not walking through life with red, irritated, or blistered skin is protecting yourself from the sun’s damaging rays. Keep your skin in a safe environment and you will avoid the pain that a sunburn brings.

Fibromyalgia is a lot like a sunburn. It is also a natural consequence brought about by certain conditions in the environment. Only in this case, I am referring to the internal environment of the body. The often painful result is the immune system turning against the body’s own tissue. Controlling those circumstances is more complicated than simply avoiding prolonged sun exposure, but the individual can control them. The goal is to change the internal environment and by doing so, avoid the pain caused by the immune system turning against the body.

What you may or may not realize is that autoimmunity occurs naturally in everyone to some degree. However, cells that are capable of attacking the body’s own tissue are kept under control by the body in an ideal environment. Genetics can also play a role in whether or not the body is likely to attack itself.

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In hypothyroidism, the thyroid gland fails to produce enough thyroid hormone or the body does not use the hormone properly. The thyroid hormone affects almost every cell in the body. An estimated 85% of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome sufferers also have hypothyroidism. Some doctors even estimate that as high as 40% of the general U.S. population suffers from below-optimal thyroid function, making it a hidden epidemic.

Iodine and selenium are important for thyroid function. Most people get enough iodine from the food they eat. This is not necessarily the case with selenium. Even a mild selenium deficiency may contribute to the development of autoimmune thyroid diseases. The toxin MSG also contributes to hypothyroidism by damaging the hypothalamus of the brain, which indirectly causes reduced thyroid production. Fluoride is another toxin that strains the thyroid.

Some foods contain chemicals called goitrogens. Goitrogens cause the thyroid gland to enlarge by interfering with thyroid hormone production. Foods that contain goitrogens include rapeseed/canola oil, soy, corn, peanuts, yucca, sweet potatoes, lima beans, and millet. Cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale, and Brussel sprouts, also contain goitrogens. However, according to Dr. Andrew Weil, lightly steaming cruciferous vegetables deactivates the goitrogens so that you may eat them without affecting your thyroid.

Note: A food that has a positive effect on the thyroid and the immune system is extra virgin coconut oil. Alternative medicine practitioners say that coconut oil should be “dosed” by starting with one teaspoon per day and working your way up to three tablespoons daily.

Symptoms of hypothyroidism vary from person to person, but may include feeling cold, fatigue, insomnia, anxiety, depression, mood swings, difficulty losing weight, PMS, heavy periods, dry skin and hair, brittle nails, headaches, hair loss, difficulty with memory and concentration, constipation, low libido, frequent infections, and irritable bowel syndrome.

The lower than normal body temperature caused by hypothyroidism is an immune system depressant. Individuals with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome should make it a priority to determine if their thyroid is doing its job. Unfortunately, blood tests for hypothyroidism are unreliable at best. They also cannot detect when people produce enough thyroid hormone but don’t use it properly.

A good way to screen for hypothyroidism is to check for a low body temperature before getting out of bed in the morning for seven consecutive days. Place the thermometer under your armpit for ten minutes. If your temperature is below 97.8 to 98.2 degrees, talk with your doctor because you are likely hypothyroid, even if you have had normal blood tests.

Note: Women should wait until after their first day of their period before taking their temperature readings.

Disclaimer: I am certainly not a doctor and nothing that I say should be taken as medical advice, nor has it been evaluated by the FDA.

Is there a link between Lyme disease and auto-immune diseases including Chronic Fatigue Sydrome? 

If you have ever been bitten by a tick, flea, mosquito, gnat, or mite or have been sexually active with someone who has been bitten, then you are at risk for Lyme Disease. Lyme can also be transmitted from mother to unborn child and through breast-feeding. Contaminated food can also pass along the disease.

Forget what you have been told about “bulls-eye” rashes and deep woods excursions – they only make up a small percentage of the population infected by Lyme. Lyme Disease is not rare. It is an epidemic. Lyme disease and the inflammation produced because of it are also most likely a factor in the severity of many individuals’ autoimmune symptoms – if not the cause. (The Lyme Disease “outbreak” of the mid-1970’s caused arthritis.) According to the renowned Dr. Cowden, “…more than 50% of chronically ill people may have Lyme contributing to their condition”. (http://www.mercola.com/2001/jul/25/lyme_disease.htm)

Lyme, which was not even recognized in the United States until 1975, may be one of the most misunderstood and devastating diseases of our day. The test normally used to detect Lyme disease is extremely unreliable. This test does not look for the Lyme causing borreliosis bacteria. Instead, the test looks for the antibodies that your body has produced against Lyme causing bacteria. The problem is that Lyme can go undetected by your immune system for a long period of time, so those antibodies are not produced against it. Even after antibodies are produced, they are generally found in the tissue, not the blood of an infected person. The result is a negative blood test even if Lyme is present all over the body. Many organ systems can be invaded before an infected person even feels any symptoms. Some will never feel symptoms. (http://www.mercola.com/2001/jul/25/lyme_disease.htm)

Dr. Jo Anne Whitaker (no known relation to the author) developed a test that looks for the Lyme borreliosis bacteria, not the antibody. Dr. Whitaker’s lab has tested thousands of people for the presence of Lyme causing bacteria. Every test performed by her lab since 1999 has been positive for Lyme disease. (http://www.healthynewage.com/herbal-health-newsletter2.htm)

Lyme causes autoimmunity in the brain and central nervous system, not just the joints. It can mimic MS, Chronic Fatigue, and many mental illnesses.