For those of you who are dealing with fibromyalgia and/or chronic fatigue syndrome along with your IBS, you will want to read an excellent article recently published by my colleague, Adrienne Dellwo, who is the About.com Guide to Fibromyalgia & Chronic Fatigue Syndrome:
- Brain Fog/Fibro Fog in Fibromyalgia & Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: What Causes It & What to Do About It
Brain fog is the term used to describe symptoms of cognitive dysfunction that are often experienced by individuals who suffer from fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome. In her article, Adrienne discusses possible causes of brain fog, covers common cognitive symptoms and discusses available treatment options. Overall, this is an excellent overview of this puzzling and frustrating phenomenon.
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Dear Dr. B,
As you know from my other posting, I use the flavonoid source, Provex CV, to treat my bowels, stomach, and cholesterol. It has been reported by many to be an aid in circulatory repairs–especially in relationship to diabetes. In my case, the first positive effects I received from it was a reversal in what had been a long running case of male smoker’s impotence, which was welcomed, if unexpected. (When I later spoke with a urologist about this, he indicated that those changes would presumably be not only from increased circulation, but also from repairs to the collapsed capillaries. These two effects would be consistent with the effects of the gingko and grapeseed on circulation and the bilberry on capillary strengthening.) Several months after beginning the supplement, I was returning home from an evening meeting–something I wouldn’t have been able to concentrate through before starting on my supplemental regimen–when it felt as though a kind of mental “scrim” was raised and my concentration and alertness increased quite noticably. At the time, I had been dealing with some severe and long running fatigue issues, almost narcoleptic in intensity, most of which I had been able to eliminate through the use of some highly absorbent vitamin minerals that I had been taking, so I hadn’t realized that I was still subject to more of this until that moment. (I had never heard of “brain fog;” but according to the symptoms listed by Dr. Dellwo, that was presumably what I experienced.)
When I first started to research what possibly could be the source of my bowel relief, I discovered a study re CFS from 2002 headed by a Dr. Unger from the U Adelaide. One of his findings was that there was about a 30% overlap of co-incidence between IBS and CFS. Of those who showed this, 100% showed lowered perfusion in the area of the brain that controlled digestion. A later inquiry with the ME Society in the UK indicated a similar circulation problem reported in the brain stem of those with CFS. (As we know, these kinds of circulatory/vascular problems can show up in numbers of places with dissimilar effects, so it is hard to place any limits on what can be improved by increasing circulation and vascular health.) My conclusion to all of this–especially because of conversations I have had with others with CFS/FM–is that at least for some of us, these conditions are brain circulation based.
Of course, most of the research in this area seems to be directed towards the effects of serotonin in these conditions. So, just to complicate matters, if you Google Scholar “flavonoids serotoin” you will come up with numbers of studies which may be even more useful in explaining these effects. Just another piece of the puzzle in the use of nutritional supplements on chronic health conditions.