A Less Diverse Ecosystem
Having IBS made a real difference. Specifically, the differences in the alpha diversity of the gut bacteria largely reflected whether one had IBS or not. Alpha diversity is a term borrowed from ecology that measures the richness or diversity of complex ecosystems . Like a forest, the higher the species richness or alpha diversity of the bacteria in the gut the more resilient, healthy, and productive the gut should be
Like This Blog?
Register for our free ME/CFS, fibromyalgia, and long COVID blogs here.
The bacteria in our guts form an ecosystem. This study suggests that some ME/CFS patients gut ecosystems are less diverse and less resilient
Alpha diversity isnt the only measure of gut health but it is an important one. One Ph.D. student reported that High gut alpha diversity has been linked to a healthy state in so many studies that it has become common knowledge in microbiome circles.
Having IBS had a dramatic influence on alpha diversity with only the ME/CFS +IBS having a reduced alpha diversity compared to healthy controls.
Possible Microbiome Therapies In Me/cfs Patients
Although multiple studies show evidence that inflammation in the gut as well as several diseases are associated with an altered gut-brain communication, evidence for a successful therapy in response to these complaints is rare . Two widely discussed therapies are probiotic interventions and fecal microbiota transplantation .
3.8.1 Probiotic Interventions
The idea of changing the intestinal microbiota, enhancing health and preventing diseases by the intake of beneficial live microorganisms sounds obvious and has not only attracted the attention of researchers and gastroenterologists, but also industry and marketing experts . A meta-analysis with 1793 patients came to the conclusion that probiotic use is effective for pain and symptom severity management in IBS patients . In contrast, a systematic review over all published probiotic meta-analyses concluded that a benefit of probiotics was only evident for antibiotic- and Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea and respiratory tract infections .
3.8.2 Fecal Microbiota Transplantation in ME/CFS Patients
3.8.3 Fasting Dietary Interventions
Impaired immune cell mitochondria and the microbiome were recently suggested to interact with circadian rhythm and driving ME/CFS pathophysiology .
3.8.4 Other Potentially Gut Microbiome Mediated Approaches
Measurements Of Plasma Brain Natriuretic Peptide Levels For Guidance Of Targeted Therapy Of Cfs
In a case-control study, Tomas and colleagues examined levels of the brain natriuretic peptide and their association with the cardiac abnormalities recently identified in CFS. Cardiac magnetic resonance examinations were performed using 3T Philips Intera Achieva scanner in CFS patients and sedentary controls matched for age and sex BNP was also measured by using an enzyme immunoassay in plasma from 42 patients with CFS and 10 controls. BNP levels were significantly higher in the CFS cohort compared with the matched controls . When these researchers compared cardiac volumes between those with high BNP levels and low BNP , there were significantly lower cardiac volumes in those with the higher BNP levels in both end-systolic and end-diastolic volumes . There were no relationships between fatigue severity, length of disease and BNP levels suggesting that these findings were unlikely to be related to deconditioning. The authors concluded that the findings of this study confirmed an association between reduced cardiac volumes and BNP in CFS lack of relationship between length of disease suggested that findings were not secondary to deconditioning. They stated that further studies are needed to examine the utility of blood BNP to act as a stratification paradigm in CFS that directs targeted treatments.
Don’t Miss: How To Combat Mental Fatigue
You Know A Healthy Gut Is Essential To A Healthy Body And Mind Right But What If A Healthy Gut Is Also Required To Overcome Fatigue What If The Right Gut Bacteria Was The Key To Increasing Your Energy
In the not too distant past, researchers believed that chronic fatigue syndrome was a psychiatric disorder . They were even so bold as to call CFS the yuppie flu. The era of the yuppie flu was only 30 years ago! Thankfully, research progressed. And the latest research has put the health of your gut under a new light. Your gut health is so important that an altered microbiome could be the main source of chronic fatigue syndrome.
Once the yuppie flu mindset came to pass, researchers actually started taking CFS seriously. They put a concerted effort into looking at what might actually cause chronic fatigue. New understandings of chronic fatigue syndrome suggested CFS came from genetics, infectious diseases , or even hormones. While all of these play a role, the latest research suggests that the health of your guts bacteria may have a much greater influence on your energy levels than researchers ever thought.
Continued Research Should Lead To Better Understanding And Treatments
A great deal more is known about ME/CFS today than 35 years ago. With continued and expanded support from the NIH, CDC, and private foundations dedicated to ME/CFS, I expect a lot of progress in the coming decade. Instead of doctors saying, The tests came back normal, there is nothing wrong, they will say, Tests showed us what was wrong, and we have treatments to fix it.
And doctors will recognize the wisdom of the wise advice we all learned in medical school: Listen to your patient. The patient is telling you the diagnosis.
Also Check: Astm Standard For Fatigue Test
Probiotics For Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Roman and associates noted that evidence suggested that the gut microbiota might play an important role in fibromyalgia syndrome and CFS. These investigators reviewed the reported effect of probiotic treatments in patients diagnosed with FMS or CFS. They performed a systematic review using 14 databases in February 2016 to search for RCTs and pilot studies of CFS or FMS patient, published in the past 10 years . The Jadad scale was used to evaluate the quality of the clinical trials considered 2 studies met the inclusion criteria, which were performed in CFS patients and both studies were considered as a high range of quality score. The administration of Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota in CFS patients, over the course of 8 weeks, reduced anxiety scores. Likewise, this probiotic changed the fecal composition following 8 weeks of treatment. Additionally, the treatment with Bifidobacterium infantis 35624 in CFS patients, during the same period, reduced inflammatory biomarkers. The authors concluded that the evidence on the usefulness of probiotics in CFS and FMS patients remains limited. The studied strains of probiotics have demonstrated a significant effect on modulating the anxiety and inflammatory processes in CFS patients. However, these researchers stated that more experimental research, focusing mainly on the symptoms of the pathologies studied, is needed.
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: All In Your Head Or In Your Gut
Doctor: What seems to be going on today?
Patient: Well Doc, I have been tired for a while
Doctor: Really? How long have you been fatigued?
Patient: I would guess a little over 6 months.
Doctor: So would you consider yourself to have chronic fatigue?
Patient: Yes I would say it is def. chronic
Doctor: Well, through my education I would say you have chronic fatigue syndrome
Really?! Is that what we have sunken too? Creating disease syndrome with the patients own subjective complaints? I think sometimes we get so caught up in labeling things that it clouds the true underlying issue. Let us start with a little history of chronic fatigue syndrome.
Xenotropic murine leukemia virus or XMRV, has long be touted as a cause for CFS but current research has dismissed this virus as a single causative agent much like the ones above.
Although no single one of these viruses are pathognomonic of CFS, it is still important to rule them out as these symptoms mimic those of CFS. Your physician, through public labs such as LabCorp and Quest, can order viral load tests. There are other labs geared toward infectious disease analysis if you want more in-depth studies ran.
The Gut and Nutrition
Picture taken from MedScape.com
Neurotransmitters
All of these metabolic pathways can become disturbed by inflammation. So where does this inflammation come from?mostly from the gut.
Digestion, the gut and probiotics
Recommended Reading: Best Medication For Chronic Fatigue
The Bacteria Of Fatigue
A second study done on the link between gut bacteria and chronic fatigue syndrome followed one hundred participants. Fifty of which had CFS. The other 50 were healthy controls and were matched for age, gender, ethnicity, and geographic location.
This study found that there were specific bacterial strains that when found as a resident of ones microbiome, could accurately predict whether the person had chronic fatigue syndrome. These bacterial strains include:
- Faecalibacterium
When the above bacteria strains gain a strong foothold in your digestive tract, problems arise. In a healthy gut microbiome, you want to see a predominance of Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, Enterococci, and Clostridium species. When your gut microbiome is lacking the beneficial bacteria strains and is instead full of the pathological bacteria strains, a condition called dysbiosis arises.
Dysbiosis is a medical term for a microbial imbalance or maladaptation inside the body. You can have dysbiosis in your gut, on your skin, in your urinary tract. Anywhere there are bacteria theres the possibility of having a microbial imbalance .
Dysbiosis is thought to be a potential cause of gut conditions like irritable bowel syndrome and inflammatory bowel disease . And this could be why you see so many cases of IBS in those with CFS. Chronic fatigue patients seem to have a preponderance to bad bacteria taking up residence in their guts .
What Is Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Irritable Bowel Syndrome, or IBS, is a disorder of the digestive system that occurs when theres a disruption in communication between the gut and brain.
IBS appears to be more common in people who are less than 50 years old, and women are more than twice as likely to develop the condition than men. Overall, IBS affects about 10-15% of the worlds population.
You should also know that IBS and Irritable Bowel Disease are not the same thing. IBD is destruction and severe inflammation of the bowel, which can cause sores and a narrowing of the intestines.
It is possible to have both conditions at the same time, especially if the cause of your IBS symptoms goes untreated.
Don’t Miss: How To Beat Crohn’s Fatigue
Controlling Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Symptoms
Currently there is no cure for ME/CFS, but there are some steps you can take that may help ease its symptoms for instance:
Track your energy/fatigue levels: Keep a diary of what days of the week and times of the day you feel more or less fatigued to assist you in determining a pattern of energy levels. This can help you adjust your schedule to be most effective at accomplishing work, school and household responsibilities.
Control your energy levels: Learn to pace yourself. Avoid overexertion when you feel more energetic, as it can lead to exhaustion, requiring days to recover. Studies have suggested that light exercise like stretching, walking and swimming can help alleviate some symptoms and raise energy levels. Further, a healthy diet consisting of plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins and low-fat dairy products can be of more value to a ME/CFS patient than processed foods.
Follow the basic principles for improved sleep: Keep your bedroom dark, quiet and at a comfortable temperature. Make sure you have a good mattress and comfortable pillow. If you cannot fall asleep within 15 minutes, find an activity that can help you feel sleepy like reading or meditating. Avoiding caffeine, alcohol and tobacco hours before your bedtime can also help you sleep better.
Adrenocorticotrophic Hormone Stimulation Test
Bearn et al noted that chronic fatigue syndrome is a disorder characterized by severe physical and mental fatigue and fatigability of central rather than peripheral origin. These researchers hypothesized that CFS is mediated by changes in hypothalamo-pituitary function and so measured the adrenocorticotrophic hormone , cortisol, growth hormone , and prolactin responses to insulin-induced hypoglycemia, and the ACTH, cortisol, and prolactin responses to serotoninergic stimulation with dexfenfluramine in non-depressed CFS patients and normal controls. These investigators have shown attenuated prolactin responses to hypoglycemia in CFS. There was also a greater ACTH response and higher peak ACTH concentrations , whereas cortisol responses did not differ, findings that were compatible with impaired adrenal cortical function. The authors concluded that the findings of this study provided evidence for both pituitary and adrenal cortical impairment in CFS they stated that further studies are needed to both confirm and determine more precisely their neurobiological basis so that rational treatments can be evolved.
Furthermore, an UpToDate review on Clinical features and diagnosis of systemic exertion intolerance disease does not mention ACTH/adrenocorticotrophic hormone stimulation as a diagnostic test.
You May Like: Will Low Platelets Cause Fatigue
Your Gut Bacteria On Fatigue
In 2016, researchers linked gut bacteria to chronic fatigue. The genetic information of the bacteria in those with CFS was significantly reduced. Chronic fatigue sufferers had reduced diversity in their microbiomes. Remember, a healthy microbiome is a diverse microbiome.
In addition to reduced diversity, those with CFS also had an increase in bacterial species that are known to be pro-inflammatory. Meaning that these particular species of bacteria increase inflammation within the body. These pro-inflammatory species had out-competed the beneficial, or, anti-inflammatory bacterial species. It doesnt take an expert to tell you that a healthy microbiome has more anti-inflammatory bacteria species than pro-inflammatory bacteria species.
Bacteria aside, researchers also found that the chronic fatigue group had an elevation of blood markers for bacterial translocation. These markers are often referred to as lipopolysaccharides . Lipopolysaccharides should not be found in your blood. When they are, it signals that there is a leaky gut .
When bacteria translocates, it means that the bacteria move from your gut to your bloodstream . It is commonly agreed that elevated lipopolysaccharides are indicative of chronic inflammation. Chronic fatigue patients also had other elevated inflammatory markers including c-reactive protein , intestinal fatty acid-binding protein , and soluble CD14 .
Do You Live With An Invisible Illness
They found two main differences: Through DNA sequencing, they found the stool samples in the patients with the condition had less diversity in bacteria present in the gut and that there were fewer that were anti-inflammatory. The blood samples were also distinct: There were markers of inflammation that the researchers theorised may be due to a “leaky gut from intestinal problems that allow bacteria to enter the blood”.
READ MORE: * Why can’t we figure out chronic fatigue syndrome?
The researchers said that it was unclear whether these were causes or a consequences of the disease, but the discovery, despite the fact that it was only based on a small sample, is important for two reasons.
First, the indicators could be used in the future to help diagnose the condition, as they were present in 83 per cent of the patients with chronic fatigue syndrome. Second, it suggests that diet and things like probiotics may be a way to help treat the disease by getting the gut microbiome back in balance.
“Our work demonstrates that the gut bacterial microbiome in chronic fatigue syndrome patients isn’t normal, perhaps leading to gastrointestinal and inflammatory symptoms in victims of the disease,” said Maureen Hanson, a professor of molecular biology and genetics at Cornell. “Furthermore, our detection of a biological abnormality provides further evidence against the ridiculous concept that the disease is psychological in origin.”
Also Check: 6 Feet Anti Fatigue Kitchen Mats
What Is Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome is a complex and disabling disease. It has been classified as a neurological disorder by the World Health Organization, though it affects many parts of the body, including the brain and muscles, digestive, immune and cardiac systems.
The term myalgic encephalomyelitis means pain in the muscles, and inflammation in the brain and spinal cord. Scientists are starting to understand some of the biological changes in the bodies of people with ME/CFS, although they have not yet found how to prevent, or cure it.
Research has found that ME/CFS is associated with problems involving:
- The bodys ability to produce energy at a cellular level
- Immune, neurological and hormonal systems
- Blood pressure and heart rate regulation
- Cognition how quickly information is processed
ME/CFS affects men, women and children of all ages, ethnicities, and socioeconomic backgrounds. 75-80% of people with the disease are female. It is estimated that up to 600,000 Victorians may be living with ME/CFS, and as many as 90% are undiagnosed.
Major Study Links Gut Bacteria To Fatigue In Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Me/cfs
Led by Cheng Guo and Brent L. Williams this big NIH-funded study from Ian Lipkins Columbia team at the Center for Solutions for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome set out to fix some of the problems found in prior gut studies. The study Deficient butyrate-producing capacity in the gut microbiome of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome patients is associated with fatigue symptoms was bigger , more rigorous, and used better bacterial sequencing techniques than past studies.
A lactobacillus gut bacteria . This study found a reduced diversity of gut bacteria in ME/CFS.
Ian Lipkins team involved seemingly everyone possible in this big NIH-funded study. The study was not just big it was long as well. Study participants provided stool samples 4xs over a year and completed a multidimensional fatigue inventory each time to boot.
Plus, following past studies from this group the study assessed the effect irritable bowel syndrome a common but certainly not universal comorbid condition found in ME/CFS has on gut flora. Finally, as it did in a past study, this new study added metabolomics to the mix as well.
The study also used a technique that appears to be new to ME/CFS gut studies called shotgun metagenomics sequencing which allows researchers to comprehensively sample all the genes in all the organisms found in a complex environment. This technique allows researchers to detect bacterial species that other methods are likely to miss.
You May Like: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Self Test
