Solving the mystery of fibromyalgia

Nearly 6 million Americans (90% of which are women) suffer what is arguably one of the most baffling conditions known to man.
Fibromyalgia.
The symptoms run far and wide—pain and tenderness in the back, neck, shoulders, hips and more. The pain is often so bad it causes loss of sleep, so people who have the condition frequently have fatigue too.
And, as if THAT isn’t enough, at least half of the people with fibromyalgia also suffer from IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) symptoms–including abdominal pain, bloating, gas, constipation and diarrhea.
Fibromyalgia sufferers can also experience extreme sensitivity to touch, migraines, bladder problems, temporomadibular joint (TMJ) problems, difficulty concentrating, dizziness, nasal congestion and numbness or swelling in the hands or feet.
Many times they have depression too. With the way they feel most days, it’s no wonder.

The various fibromyalgia faces and triggers

The American College of Rheumatology bases the diagnosis of fibromyalgia on just 2 things—soft tissue pain of at least 3 months duration and 11 out of 18 paired tender points.
Unfortunately that means some people are wrongly diagnosed with it, and thus have not received the RIGHT treatment for whatever their real problem is…and so they continue to suffer.
For those that are rightly diagnosed, there is not just one single issue behind the condition, so it truly becomes a mystery for both doctor and patient alike.
Instead the triggers and contributing factors to fibromyalgia can include the following:

1. Circulating immune complexes (CICs)

In an ideal world of good digestion, foods would be broken down into their individual amino acids, glucose molecules, fatty acids, vitamins and minerals. These particles are small enough to be absorbed through the intestinal wall into your bloodstream, where they can get your liver’s blessing and sail around your body to provide nourishment where you need it.
However, when your digestion is poor, molecules of food that have not been adequately broken down to be used for nourishment bully their way through your intestinal wall, enter your bloodstream, taunt your immune system and create inflammation from head to toe.
These “too-big” food particles are known as circulating immune complexes (CICs) and are a leading cause of fibromyalgia. They are also the root cause of many food sensitivities.

2. Emotional and physical trauma

Fibromyalgia can be a physical manifestation of emotional trauma. People with fibromyalgia have a higher history of chronic stress as well as emotional, physical and/or sexual trauma than people without the condition.
Many times fibromyalgia sufferers can pinpoint a traumatic event that occurred just before the initial onset of symptoms such as the death of a loved one, an accident or a severe illness.

3. Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO)

Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) occurs when some of the bacteria from your LARGE intestine “slide up” and get into the SMALL intestine—and this can spell trouble.
You see, the different types of bacteria that live in the large vs. small intestines each have different functions, and when they’re in the wrong place, they do the wrong job!
For example, most carbs are absorbed in your small intestine. The only exception is dietary fiber — that passes on to the large intestine.
The bacteria in your large intestine break down fiber and as they’re doing that, gas is produced. The bacteria usually absorb most of the gas, and any excess is passed as a small amount of flatulence.
However, with SIBO some of the fiber-digesting bacteria from your large intestine get into in the small intestine. As a result, fiber that you eat begins to be broken down too SOON — in the small intestine.
Since your small intestine isn’t equipped to handle this and it doesn’t have the right bacteria to absorb the gas that’s produced, you can get some serious bloating, excessive gas and pain as a result.
Plus having bacteria in your small intestine that are from “the wrong side of the tracks” also confuses your immune system.
You see, your immune system is on the ball–it knows pretty quickly when things aren’t quite right somewhere in your body. The problem is your immune cells sometimes are not the sharpest pencils in the box.
And in this case, when they detect the large intestinal bacteria in the small intestine, instead of saying, “Oh, it’s just some misrouted guys from down below,” they instead act as if they’ve caught an invader and launch an attack which can produce bloating, gas and pain.
This can also lead to serious inflammation which can manifest itself as fibromyalgia. Experts estimate that at many as 8 out of 10 people with fibromyalgia also have SIBO.

4. Nutrient deficiencies

Without proper nutrition, the energy production and waste elimination cycles in your cells cannot function correctly—and that can lead to the diffuse inflammation that is seen with fibromyalgia.
Especially important here is Vitamin D. At least half of the people with fibromyalgia are deficient in Vitamin D.
The most vulnerable people to Vitamin D deficiency are those in the northern climates where the weather is colder and they’re not outdoors naturally making Vitamin D from the sunshine as much as those in the south.

5. Candida overgrowth

Candida overgrowth in the gut can also be a causal factor in the development of fibromyalgia.
Candida is a normal inhabitant in your gut and when you have a healthy flora balance, Candida is kept in check and is harmless.
But if it instead is allowed to grow out of control, it becomes a dangerous fungus which can “eat away” at your gut wall and get into your bloodstream. From there it can take root in just about any of your organs or tissues, create inflammation and upset their ability to function properly.
When that includes your muscles and connective tissues—hello fibromyalgia.

Many different causes but just ONE answer?

Although fibromyalgia can have many different causes or contributing factors, the typical medical solutions are unfortunately typically limited to ONE option–drugs that are supposed to provide symptomatic relief.
These usually include anti-inflammatory drugs, antidepressants, anticonvulsants (seizure drugs) and sleeping pills.
But sadly most fibromyalgia sufferers get only limited relief, if any, from the drugs. One study showed that 90% of people treated with anti-inflammatory drugs were still symptomatic after 3 years!
And of course that’s not even considering the side effects from the drugs that they’ve had to suffer with as well.
Long-term use of anti-inflammatories can lead to gastritis and other GI problems (on top of the IBS symptoms that many sufferers already have), and sleeping pills (like Ambien) can cause drowsiness, stomach upset, dependence, headaches, memory problems and even hallucinations.
Anticonvulsants can lead to liver or kidney damage or decrease the amount of platelets in your blood (so your blood can’t clot as well). They can also cause dizziness, drowsiness, fatigue, nausea, tremors, skin rashes and weight gain, plus birth defects in pregnant women.
Antidepressants are no peach either. Some of the common effects of antidepressants like Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Lexapro, and Celexa include:

Nausea
Nervousness
Headaches
Sleepiness
Sexual dysfunction
Dizziness
Stomach upset
Weight gain

Plus the elevated levels of serotonin caused by these drugs in some cases can cause changes in your cell neurons that can be classified as brain damage!

Take that bull by the horns!

As much of a “monster” as fibromyalgia may be, when you take natural measures that SAFELY address not only the symptoms of it but also the possible underlying causes, you can feel a WHOLE lot better from head to toe!
Here are measures you can take to help make a tremendous difference in how you feel. Now keep in mind that they all might now apply to your individual “version” of fibromyalgia, so it’s important to keep trying until you see what works for you.

1. Look and listen

Step one is to look at and listen to your body for clues about what may be causing your fibromyalgia.
Many sufferers have unresolved emotional issues or post-traumatic stress. If that applies to you, counseling with a skilled therapist can make a big difference.
Also, you can get tested for food and environmental allergies, SIBO, imbalanced hormones and nutritional deficiencies, all of which can be a cause or contributing factor to fibromyalgia.

2. Foods to avoid

Certain foods have been shown to worsen fibromyalgia symptoms in some people. While these are not “universal offenders” some people have been helped by avoiding the following:

Aspartame (NutraSweet)
Food additives like MSG (monosodium glutamate) and nitrates
Refined carbohydrates (sugar, white flour, white rice)
Caffeine
Dairy
Nightshade vegetables (bell peppers, tomatoes and eggplant)

3. Consider supplementing with Vitamin D

At least half of the people with fibromyalgia have Vitamin D deficiency, and many have seen their symptoms literally disappear once supplementation was started!
The dosage recommended by most experts is 1,000 – 2,000 IU.

4. Encourage efficient digestion and a more alkaline pH

Poor digestion is a major contributing factor to CICs and SIBO, both of which can stir up fibromyalgia like I mentioned above. It can also cause poor nutrient absorption which is also a concern for people with fibromyalgia.
Plus when lots of acid creating foods are eaten (and foods like this are ABUNDANT with our “Standard American Diet” or SAD–appropriate acronym), the acid residue from those foods can get absorbed into your bloodstream from the intestines.
From there they are carried all over your body where they can encourage inflammation and pain…and when they settle in your muscles and connective tissues, they can come out as fibromyalgia.
So to fight (or help prevent) fibromyalgia, it’s essential to eat foods and meals that are digested easily and minimize acid wastes!
And that is precisely what you will learn to do with the Great Taste No Pain health system.
The Great Taste No Pain guides will show you how to help clear acid wastes from your body by eating delicious, nourishing foods in the combinations that make for easy digestion and assimilation.
That means you can help cut fibromyalgia right off at four of its sources!
Plus you can feel the difference in many other ways too–fewer digestive problems like IBS, heartburn or gas, more energy and everyone’s favorite–lose excess weight without even TRYING!

5. Try acupuncture or chiropractic treatment

Many people have reported tremendous relief from fibromyalgia symptoms with acupuncture and/or chiropractic treatment.

6. Supplement with probiotics

Probiotics can help fight SIBO and Candida overgrowth, both of which can trigger fibromyalgia symptoms.
It’s important to use a formula which contains both bifidobacterium species (for the colon) and lactobacillus species (which beef up the small intestine)—that way you’re covered from one end of the intestinal tract to the other.
Super Shield multi-strain probiotic formula is up to this important challenge.
Super Shield’s 13 strains of beneficial bacteria can help fight SIBO safely and naturally from within by restoring and maintaining the flora balance in both your small and large intestines.
With a proper flora balance, that will help carbohydrates (and ALL your foods) to be broken down where they’re supposed to be, without the resulting horrible gas and bloating.
Plus Super Shield can help keep digestion smooth, which can help prevent toxins and improperly broken down food molecules from getting into your bloodstream and taunting your immune system.
In addition, two of the powerhouse strains in Super Shield multi-strain probiotic formula (Lactobacillus rhamnosus and Lactobacillus acidophilus) have been shown to be extremely effective in fighting Candida overgrowth!

7. Consider supplementing with Vitamin C and/or CoQ10

Vitamin C boosts immune function, helps detoxify your cell pathways and has antiviral effects, all of which can be helpful to someone with fibromyalgia.
Plus CoQ10 is necessary for energy production, immune function, repair and maintenance of your tissues and enhanced cell functioning.
3,000 mg. of Vitamin C and 100 mg. of CoQ10 per day are the dosages recommended by experts.

8. Balance your Omega-6 and Omega-3 essential fatty acids

The Omega-6 and Omega-3 essential fatty acids (EFAs) in your body work together to use and control inflammation.
You see, Omega-6 EFAs activate your body’s defense mechanisms like blood clotting, inflammation and allergic reactions, and you need those during emergencies such as when you sustain an injury or ingest something dangerous.
Then when the “emergency” is over, Omega-3 EFAs come in and cool down inflammation, produce calmness in your nervous system and reduce cholesterol and clotting in the blood.
This process works perfectly as long as you have about a 5:1 ratio of Omega-6: Omega-3 EFAs in your body.
But the typical American gets truckloads of inflammation-causing Omega-6 fatty acids in our typical diets and WAAAY too few Omega-3s, causing our ratios to shoot through the roof and leading to a state of constant, chronic inflammation.
And we have the inflammatory diseases (including fibromyalgia) to prove it!
But you can help reduce inflammation and pain dramatically by replenishing your Omega-3 supply with a high quality fish oil supplement like VitalMega-3.
Just 2 capsules a day gives you 600 mg of EPA and 400 mg of DHA–the dosage and ratio of these Omega-3 superstars that has been recommended by experts for inflammation relief as well as high blood pressure.
If you suffer from the agony of fibromyalgia, your days of feeling hopeless and going from one pain-filled day to the next can be over very soon.
See for yourself how much better you can feel when take safe, natural measures to alleviate your symptoms and most importantly, help tackle fibromyalgia at some of its common underlying causes!
And when you’re feeling better, write and tell me about it. I’ll look forward to hearing from you.
To your health,
Sherry Brescia