Fibromyalgia and Vegan and Vegetarian Diets - Are There Links and Benefits?

Interesting: Beginnings of data towards the benefits of a whole foods plant diet for fibromyalgia (worth the watch, the video is @ 5 minutes, though they should have had someone else do the voice over as the doctor is a bit monotone.)

http://nutritionfacts.org/video/fibromyalgia-vs-vegetarian-raw-vegan-diets/

I have to admit since I have cut out meats (red meat, chicken, pork) and dairy (cows milk, yogurt) I truly do feel better! I don't even miss those items!

Thoughts? 

New Study on Lyme Disease and Lymph Nodes

Good blurb, I like seeing that Lyme Disease is getting attention in studies:

http://www.lymedisease.org/news/lyme_disease_views/lymphnodes.html

Chronic Pain, Fibromyalgia and Brain Shrinkage

So I was ready an article in a magazine about chronic pain and it mentioned this "...Aging causes the brain to atrophy at a rate of half a percent a year, but chronic pain causes the brain to atrophy twice as fast..." and I kinda freaked. I mean I had seen this somewhere before, but I chose to ignore it, I wasn't ready to face that.

Now I'm facing it.

I wanted a better source on this info, and I found this addressed on the National Fibromyalgia Association website, direct link below. What makes it really good is that the author is also one of the researchers who released this report on fibromyalgia's effects on the brain. It gets a little scientific at times, so I've tried to highlight some of the key points below, but the entire article is well worth the read.

“What Do You Mean, My Brain Is Shrinking?!”
By Patrick B. Wood, MD

http://www.fmaware.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=8489&news_iv_ctrl=0 

"The Journal of Neuroscience recently published the results of a study that demonstrated fibromyalgia is associated with a loss of volume of brain gray matter.1"

"...we found that the atrophy associated with fibromyalgia was over three times greater than that of normal aging, with each year of fibromyalgia equivalent to 9.5 times the loss of normal aging."

"Intriguingly, the brain centers that undergo accelerated loss of gray matter volume during stress in animal models are also connected to many of the symptoms associated with fibromyalgia, including pain."

"Among the most encouraging findings stemming from the work of scientists like McEwen and Sapolsky is the observation that blocking the effects of stress-related chemicals can protect against their damaging impact on sensitive brain structures"

"Another agent that has demonstrated utility in promoting brain health is omega-3 fatty acid, i.e. fish oil. As previously noted, chronic fatigue syndrome is another one of the disorders that has been associated with brain atrophy. A case study from England reported by Puri and colleagues describes the treatment of a woman with chronic fatigue syndrome with omega-3 supplementation, which resulted not only in marked clinical improvement, but also in a reduction in the volume of her lateral ventricles, which suggests she benefited with an increase in brain tissue volume.16 While there is no data in the literature as to whether taking omega-3 may be useful in the treatment of FM per se, there are several other health-related benefits. So, while I recommend taking omega-3 supplements to my patients on a regular basis, it would be very interesting to see how they would perform in a structured clinical trial."

"What remains unknown at this point is whether the reductions in brain volumes in FM are related to actual loss of brain cells, or simply with cell shrinkage—I suspect the latter. And while the mechanisms of these changes are complex and not fully understood, there is reason to believe that they may be prevented and possibly reversed, as we shall see."

"While the proposition that fibromyalgia is associated with accelerated brain atrophy may be unsettling, there is something of a silver lining to the cloud. For years, the medical community has struggled to come to terms with the reality of the disorder or to take it seriously, due in large part to the lack of objective findings to distinguish FM patients from those who don’t have the disorder. The results of our study contribute to what has become the incontrovertible evidence that fibromyalgia is all too real and, I think, inspire a greater sense of urgency regarding the need to develop rational treatments."

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED for CFS STUDIES

Two important ME/CFS research studies being conducted at the University of Miami are in need of additional volunteers.

If you are not already a participant, please sign up today. If you are already a participant, please help recruit additional participants for these two important research projects.

The Good Day Bad Day Study

This study is investigating the relationship between immune function and symptom severity. The study involves both those with a diagnosis of chronic fatigue syndrome as well as healthy individuals.

Patients will be asked to come into the university for a total of four visits. During the first visit, you will be asked to fill out questionnaires and receive a complete physical examination. Another assessment will take place when you feel relatively well (Good Day) and another on a day when your symptoms are severe (Bad Day). Then you will be asked to come in for an 18 month follow up. Healthy individuals will also come in for a total of four visits.

All patient volunteers are asked to find a healthy person to participate in the study with them. Spouses and immediate family members are not eligible to participate.

All participants will be paid $20 per visit to cover travel costs.

The study will be conducted at the offices of Dr. Nancy Klimas, 1120 NW 14^th Street, Suite 712, Miami, FL 33136.

To register or request additional information please contact: Phones: 305 243-1568 or 305 243-6218. Email: lgarcia2@med.miami.edu or Zbarnes@med.miami.edu.

The TeleHealth Study

This research project is designed to help individuals with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome understand and manage their condition.

Participants will be provided with information about the nature and effects of stress reactions, how to cope and manage stress, and how to take better care of themselves via an innovative home-based program.

To be eligible to participate, participants must be between the ages of 21-65, speak, read and write English fluently, have a telephone line and reside in Dade or Broward counties within the next nine months. Each participant will receive $50 for each completed assessment.

The TeleHealth study is funded by the National Institutes of Health in collaboration with the Behavioral Medicine Research Center at the University of Miami .

For more information, please call: 305-243-1434.