Fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia is characterized by widespread pain and fatigue. It is diagnosed with a quick 5 minute examination: a physician or other health care practitioner prods eighteen specific body points. Pain in eleven or more points results in a diagnosis of Fibromyalgia.

According to Mayo Clinic, possible causes include sleep disturbances, injury or trauma, infection, abnormalities of the autonomic (sympathetic) nervous system and changes in muscle metabolism.

Current research in Functional Medicine suggest more fundamental causes including liver toxicity and stress, dysfunction of the gastrointestinal tract or adrenals, mitochondrial damage, oxidative stress and acidic pH.

While each individual may have a different cause, all diseases have the same thing in common…they all begin as abnormal physiology. The key is detecting early changes in the body’s physiology, getting to the root of the problem. Functional Medicine offers the key to detection of one’s specific cause allowing an individualized wellness plan. Functional Medicine Assessment is a revolutionary method of evaluating health status as defined by eleven biomarkers that provide a snapshot of one’s true state of health. This glimpse of a patient’s metabolic imbalances in the cells’ environment can help practitioners more accurately assess the cause and realign the physiology accordingly, thus providing greater opportunity to restore true health.

So, what makes more sense? What costs less? Treating the symptoms or managing the cause? Once the specific causes are identified, lifestyle changes allow patient-driven intervention such as these:

1. Eliminate Processed Food – especially foods that contain gluten and phytic acid.

· Gluten is found in all grain (except sprouted grains like “Ezekiel bread^tm”). Gluten is a protein that is very difficult to digest because we lack the specialized enzymes to effectively break it down, which causes damage to the cells in the GI tract.

· Phytic acid also found in grains and wheat products decreases the absorption of some essential minerals like Calcium, Iron, Magnesium and Zinc, which help decrease cytotoxins and prostaglandins production which cause inflammation.

2. Drink lots of purified water.

· You need half your body weight in ounces of water every day. If you drink any caffeinated beverages throughout the day, you need to match the ounces of caffeinated drink with an equal amount of water. For example, if you weigh 100 pounds, you would need to drink 50 ounces of clean water each day. If you weigh 100 pounds and drink 10 ounces of coffee, then you need to drink 60 ounces of water per day (50 oz plus 10 oz because you drank 10 oz of coffee.)

3. Take a high quality omega-3 essential fatty acid (fish oil), at 1,500 - 3,000 milligrams (mg) per day.

· The two most important fatty acids found in fish oil are EPA and DHA, and together they need to equal 1,500 - 3,000 mg of the total fatty acids in the fish oil. This also neutralizes the acid in your body.

4. Consider essential minerals like Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Selenium and Zinc.

· These important nutrients help decrease cytotoxins and prostaglandin production which cause inflammation. Fibroplex^tm is a nutriceutical which contains, among other things, a superior form of magnesium called, Magnesium Bis-glycinate. This form of magnesium helps increase energy production and reverses relative hypoxia...lack of oxygen to muscles. Ultrainflamx^tm is a medical food designed to help reduce pain-causing inflammation in the body. The results that my patients experience while using this sophisticated formula are incredible. Co Q10 is a powerful antioxidant that helps protect the body’s cells from attack and damage.

Schedule your appointment now to discuss how a Functional Medicine Assessment (FMA) can provide your keys to wellness.