America’s Human Energy Crisis

Antidote provided by Jacob Teitelbaum, MD, in From Fatigued to Fantastic!

The “perfect storm” for American health is preparing to hit. A combination of poor nutrition, decreasing sleep, increasing stress and environmental toxins has created a human energy crisis of unprecedented proportions. Over the past 10 years, the incidence of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) and Fibromyalgia (FMS) has exploded by 400 to 1000 percent, as documented in five separate studies. The numbers for those with CFS in the U.S. , previously estimated at 500,000, are now being re-tallied at closer to 2.5 million. Previous estimates placed the number of Americans with FMS at 6 million. Studies worldwide suggest this has likely gone up in the last decade to approximately 24 million Americans.

The publication of From Fatigued to Fantastic! (Avery/Penguin Group USA, Oct. 4, 2007) by board certified internist Jacob Teitelbaum, MD, provides a timely solution following the recent recognition by the CDC, NIH, and FDA that CFS and FMS are bona fide and devastating illnesses. Newly updated in a third edition, the best-seller which has sold over 500,000 copies, provides a comprehensive understanding of CFS/FMS and latest research, as well as a step-by-step guide to the “SHIN protocol” that has helped so many thousands of these patients get their lives back.

“If you’re exhausted and unable to sleep, experience brain fog, weight gain and low libido, you probably have CFS; if you have widespread pain as well, then you likely also have fibromyalgia. They’re two sides of the same coin,” explains Dr. Teitelbaum, who himself suffered from the disease as a medical student. “CFS/FMS reflects a personal energy crisis where more energy is spent than the body is able to produce. The area using the most energy, the hypothalamus, effectively blows a fuse and since it controls sleep as well as hormonal function, blood pressure and sweating, people are unable to sleep despite being exhausted. The energy meltdown also causes widespread muscle shortening (think: writers cramp or rigor mortis) with widespread pain. 

Dr. Teitelbaum’s “SHIN Protocol,” featured in the book and published in the Journal of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (8:2, 2001), was found to improve the quality of life an average of 75 percent at 3 months and 90 percent at 2 years, with 90 percent of the study patients improving. “SHIN” addresses four vital areas of health: Sleep; Hormonal deficiencies (despite normal blood tests); Infections; and Nutritional deficiencies.

Another study by Dr. Teitelbaum published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (12:9, 2006) showed that a simple 5-carbon sugar called ribose (5000 mg 3x/day) increased energy in fibromyalgia patients by an average of 45 percent after only two weeks.

“Having had CFS and Fibromyalgia back in 1975 (which left me homeless for much of the year) I know what patients are going through,” says Dr. Teitelbaum. “The good news is that it is now 2007 and these illnesses have become very treatable!”  

Jacob Teitelbaum MD is Medical Director of the national Fibromyalgia and Fatigue Centers (www.fibroandfatigue.com). He is the author of From Fatigued to Fantastic! (3rd edition, Avery/Penguin Group, Oct 4, 2007); Three Steps to Happiness! Healing through Joy, and Pain Free 1-2-3: A Proven Program to Get You Pain Free! (McGraw-Hill, 2006).  Web site: www.Vitality101.com.