Solutions for Fatigue and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome There's something in this report for everyone

Part C– crossing mitochondrial membrane Part A – ATPlevels

ATP

Mitochondrion

NAD

Magnesium

ADP

Energy

Oxygen

Part B - ADPto ATPconversion

Figure 3

The joy of the ATP profiles test is that we now have an objective test of chronic fatigue syndrome which clearly shows this illness has a physical basis. This test clearly shows that cognitive behaviour therapy, graded exercise and anti-depressants are irrelevant in addressing the root cause of this illness.

To get the full picture I recommend combining this test with measuring levels of the front line anti- oxidants Co-enzyme Q10, Superoxide dismutase (SODase), and glutathione peroxidase together with NAD (a functional test of vit B3 levels) and L-carnitine. See ANTIOXIDANTS.

Cell-free DNA is very useful because it measures tissue damage. When cells are damaged and die, they release their contents into the blood stream – cell-free DNA measures the extent of this damage. I believe this equates to how ill one feels – or malaise. The levels which come back are similar to those from patients recovering from major infections, trauma, surgery or chemotherapy – so this test puts CFS firmly in the realms of major organic pathology. Where there is tissue damage, the immune system is activated for healing and repair – this requires energy and can produce distressing symptoms such as PAIN and INFLAMMATION.

SODase is an important antioxidant which mops up the free radicals produced in all the inefficient chemical reactions in the cells. Dr McLaren-Howard also looks at the genes which code for the different types of SODase! It is common to find blockage or polymorphisms typical of toxic stress. See INFLAMMATION.

Dr McLaren-Howard has recently developed a serum L-carnitine test and made it available in September 2009. I have now included it in the Mitochondrial Function Profile.

In fact, all of these above blood tests have now been combined as a Mitochondrial function profile and can be ordered from my practice – see details below p. To order any test123.

One other important co-factor in the production of energy in cells is D-ribose. It is used up so quickly by cells that measuring levels is unhelpful, but low levels of ATP imply low levels of D- ribose. .

Therefore, the cost of the Mitochondrial function profile, which will now include the mitochondrial function studies (ATP profiles), levels of Co-enzyme Q10, glutathione peroxidase, zinc copper SODase, manganese SODase and extracellular SODase together with NAD levels, cell- free DNA and L-carnitine is £225, plus £70 for the letter of interpretation to the GP.

John McLaren-Howard now has specialist equipment to refine these tests further, particularly in respect of oxidative phosphorylation. See Practical Details p. 123 should you wish to order this test

Implications for Treatment

Many patients I see get well with my standard work up with respect to vitamins and minerals, diet, pacing and sleep, i.e. the foundations of recovery. All these things must be put in place to repair and prevent ongoing damage to mitochondria so allowing them to recover. For mitochondria to recover they need all the essential vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids and amino acids to manufacture the cellular machinery to restore normal function. The mitochondrial function tests then allow us to identify lesions which can be corrected by attention to nutritional supplements, improving antioxidant status, detoxing, hyperventilation or whatever. CFS sufferers have limited reserves of physical, mental and emotional energy and this test allows us to direct those energies into the most fruitful line of approach. (see p. 24 for the interpretation of the mitochondrial function test results)

Examples of some test results

ATP profiles

This patient has low levels of ATP (1), low magnesium (2), poor conversion of ADP to ATP (3) with blockage of the active sites (4) together with poor translocator protein function (5) – no wonder there is severe fatigue!

A closer look at oxidative phosphorylation with micro-respirometry studies chart

A closer look at translocator protein studies chart

Cardiolipin Studies – a closer look at mitochondrial membranes chart

Anti-oxidant studies chart

A2) Thyroid and Adrenals

A lab test for identifying adrenal fatigue is a saliva test. It’s important to take samples of the saliva at different times of the day in order to establish the true cortisol rhythm and DHEA levels. Samples are taken in the morning (6am-8am), midday (12pm-1pm), late afternoon (4pm-5pm) and nighttime (10pm-midnight). Cortisol should be at the highest in the morning and the lowest at night.

Taking your body temperature when you wake up in the morning and finding that your temperature is below 97.8 degrees Fahrenheit can help to detect adrenal and/or thyroid problems

Please note that adrenal fatigue (exhaustion) has three different stages before it reaches failure. People in stage one of adrenal fatigue have a high amount of cortisol overall and at least one cortisol reading that is higher than it should be. An overall high count and a spike at an inappropriate time of the day indicates there is a problem. Cortisol must be kept under control because it eats muscle when at an excessively high level.

Stage two of adrenal fatigue is commonly misdiagnosed and can even go undiagnosed entirely. This primarily happens because a person’s total cortisol level is normal in stage two! The key indicators in this stage are the DHEA level and a low level of cortisol in the morning, midday, or afternoon. The trouble with properly identifying adrenal fatigue in stage two is that cortisol levels are often normal at night and the overall reading usually averages in the normal range as well. Again, cortisol should be at the highest in the morning and lowest at night. If a client is experiencing low cortisol levels when it should be at its peak, there is a problem.

Stage three of adrenal fatigue is the easiest to identify. The DHEA level is low and most cortisol levels are borderline low or low throughout the day. And of course, the total cortisol level is low as well. Low nighttime cortisol is a major marker for late stage three adrenal fatigue.

There are some tests that can be taken at home which tell you if adrenal fatigue is part of your problem. For example, go into an indoor room that is away from the natural sunlight (a room with no windows or, at the very least, with the shades lowered) with a small flashlight. Shine the light at a 45-degree angle towards your eye and you will see your pupil shrink (the pupil is the black center of your eye). The light of the flashlight will cause the pupil to shrink and it should remain constricted while the light is being pointed at your eye. You likely have adrenal problems if you see your pupil pulsing (alternating between being bigger and smaller). While this simple test shouldn’t replace an actual diagnosis, it does point to what could be the source of your issues and it would be something to further investigate with a health professional.

Another test is I recommend involves an electronic blood pressure cuff (the Omron® blood pressure cuff can be purchased online for around $50-60). Place the blood pressure cuff on your arm as you normally would when measuring your blood pressure but lay down on your back for 5-10 minutes before taking the measurement. Have someone write down what the measurement is. Then stand up as fast as you can, take your blood pressure again, and write down that number. You are looking for the difference in blood pressure numbers between lying down and standing. This is called an orthostatic measurement.

To illustrate, let’s say someone’s measurement is 120/80 when laying down and jumps to 130/85 immediately after standing. That’s good! The body naturally increases blood pressure when standing because gravity places more demands on our bodies. It is normal and healthy to see both the systolic rate (the top number) and the diastolic rate (the bottom number) increase 5-10 mmHg when going from laying down to standing. What if the rate doesn’t go up? For example, let’s say a person’s lying down blood pressure rate is 120/80 but it goes down to 110/80 immediately after standing. That’s bad. When this occurs, I often find the person has adrenal dysfunction and toxicity issues. Similarly, people who become light headed or dizzy when rising from a lying or sitting position also tend to have adrenal dysfunction and toxicity issues.

Conventional practitioners generally determine if a patient has thyroid problems by testing their TSH level. What I find interesting is that TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) is not even manufactured by the thyroid! It’s actually manufactured by the pituitary gland and is meant to communicate with the thyroid. Low TSH indicates hyperthyroidism (overactive) and high TSH suggests hypothyroidism (low functioning).

Conventional testing says that “normal” values for TSH are typically .5 to 5 µ/mL. I believe that is too big of a range. I would not use the conventional bell curve that is used to determine the “normal range.” Instead, I recommend all practitioners and those who suspect they have thyroid dysfunction to use the optimal values that are between 1.8 and 3 µ/mL. The bell curve used to show the “normal” range is established by sick people! Think about it: who has their TSH tested? People who are displaying symptoms of having a dysfunctioning thyroid! To be on the edges of what is considered normal in that group is not optimal.

Like I said earlier, TSH communicates and works with the thyroid. The pituitary gland in the brain releases TSH which then stimulates the thyroid gland. The thyroid gland then produces its T4 hormone (and a small amount of T3), which is then converted to the T3 hormone primarily in the liver. T3 is the active form of the thyroid hormone and is the most important.

To take it to another level, there is a difference between Total T4 and Total T3 vs. Free T4 and Free T3. The body’s cells can only use the free forms of the hormone and Free T3 is the most important. Your body uses proteins to transport T4 & T3 hormones in the blood stream. Your body breaks up the proteins and allows the T3 to be absorbed at the cellular level (which makes it Free T3).

T4 is converted to T3 primarily in the liver and this is typically a problem for most people with hypothyroidism. During times of stress the body converts T4 into Reverse T3 (RT3) instead of T3. This is a normal process that typically is very short lived. When the body is under extreme physical, chemical and/or emotional stress this conversion of T4 into Reverse T3 becomes chronic and is very dangerous.

The leading cause of hypothyroidism is caused by an autoimmune condition called Hashimoto’s Disease, which was the first to be recognized as an autoimmune condition in 1912. Hashimoto’s Disease causes the body to attack its own thyroid gland tissues. Testing thyroid antibody levels (TPO and TG) reveal this problem. The most common symptom of the disease is feeling worse even with thyroid replacement hormone treatment. Another symptom is when lab tests show both hypothyroid and hyperthyroid levels at different times.58 When diagnosing a client with potential thyroid problems I always recommend a complete thyroid panel that includes at least: TSH, Free T4, Free T3, Reverse T3 and Thyroid Antibodies. Depending on what is found in the lab tests, there are different protocols we could follow to heal the thyroid.

Most doctors don’t run Reverse T3 or Antibody testing because their treatment would be the same regardless of the results. They typically give a prescription synthroid (or generic Levothyroxine), which is a T4 hormone replacement. If the patient is seeing an alternative medicine practitioner they will typically be switched to Armour thyroid, which is a bio-identical T3/T4 hormone from pigs, not just T4. A recent issue that has emerged is that the manufacturers of Armour thyroid are reducing their production costs by adding gluten as a filler. If you need a bio-identical T3/T4 hormone, I recommend that you find a compound pharmacy to specifically make it for you and eliminate the gluten filler because research has shown a correlation between gluten intolerance and Hashimoto’s

A3) Heavy Metals

Conventional testing for heavy metals consists of drawing blood to see what’s in the blood stream. The problem is that heavy metals will only appear in the bloodstream if there was an acute exposure within the last week. For example, if you broke a thermometer and had your blood tested two days later, mercury would likely be found in your bloodstream. This kind of testing is not accurate for determining the effects of a lifetime chronic metals. The target of heavy metals is not the blood stream. That means that if you grew up in a home with leaded pipes but were not exposed to lead in the last week, a standard blood test for lead would come up negative but there would still be lead stored up in your body (and specifically your bones). Standard blood tests miss the heavy metals that are being stored in your body. of exposure or exposure to heavy

Hair analysis is another testing method that practitioners use. However, while hair analysis has some accuracy for minerals, it is not useful for detecting heavy metals. Also, some practitioners muscle test for heavy metals. I caution against this type of testing for heavy metals. I am not against muscle testing in general, but it is not useful regarding heavy metals. For instance, mercury has a high affinity for brain tissue (specifically the hypothalamus and pituitary gland). When someone is muscle testing they are challenging the nervous system, including the brain. Since mercury is a neurotoxin that targets the brain, the accuracy of muscle testing would be impacted by any mercury present in the brain at the time of testing. I think of mercury as the heavy metal of deception. My wife had a blood test and a hair analysis for heavy metals that came back negative. She was also muscle tested and heavy metals were shown to not be a major issue. Those results were inaccurate and it caused more suffering until someone told us how to properly test for heavy metals.

The best test that is currently available is a heavy metal urine challenge test. When being given this test, you take a true heavy metal chelator like DMPS, DMSA, or EDTA and your urine is then collected to be analyzed. The chelator pulls heavy metals out of the body through the liver, kidneys, and urine. In this test, the urine is sent in and inspected for the presence and amount of twenty different heavy metals. There are very specific instructions needed for this test to make sure it is performed correctly and to ensure that it doesn’t cause the individual any harm. Go to a trusted health professional with experience in testing and treating heavy metal toxicity to have this test properly administered.

A4) The Digestive Tract (Digestion Testing)

A5) Biotoxins (Lyme and mold)

Years ago, the C4a biotoxin marker test was great because the National Jewish Laboratory was used to process the C4a results. Today, other laboratories often handle the analyzing of the samples for this test and their results are not as clinically accurate. The National Jewish Laboratory had a normal range of less than 2,800 while the new testing states that levels are normal when they are less than 700. That is a huge shift and I don’t believe it is backed up by science. In fact, it just muddies the water and makes properly identifying biotoxic illness more difficult. Also, the C4a is a general biotoxin marker, so it does not specify between mold or Lyme disease. As I previously mentioned, the VCS test (Visual Contrast Sensitivity) can indicate biotoxin levels and is therefore more accurate and useful.

6i) Exposure to mold

An exposure to mold incurred while inhabiting a residence thirteen years ago. Ongoing exposure in carpets. Ongoing exposure in food. My condition initially began immediately after cleaning a garage. I also took many naps using a moldy pillow. Lymes usually is existing and going on with parsites, molds and other biofilms, leaky gut, etc. http://www.helladelicious.com/diy/2012/06/biofilms-parasites-mold-and-electromagnetic-frequencies/

The Truth about Mold

While it is easy to grasp the concept of toxins in our food and water, you may be less aware of another factor in your environment that can have serious repercussions for your health and wellness: molds.

Molds are a form of fungus, usually microscopic, that live and reproduce on organic matter such as plants or animals. While the word “mold” tends to have a negative connotation, it actually describes a diverse group of organisms, some beneficial and some harmful. Most of us are aware that mold plays a critical role in our ecosystem. When living things die, mold sets in and makes them biodegradable. Without it, our land and oceans would be bursting with all of the dead plants and animals from years gone by. Mold works in a miraculous way to get rid of filth.

Mold consumption impacts the diet aspect of the Complete Healing Formula™. That’s not to say that all molds are bad for you. Some of them are actually beneficial. Many delicious and healthy cheeses owe their existence to healthy molds. The species Penicillium roqueforti is the key mold that gives Gorgonzola, Stilton, and the aptly named Roquefort cheeses their distinct flavors and appearances. Beyond these three, many other cheeses likewise require other safe, edible kinds of molds in the mix to craft their appealing flavors.

But not all molds are beneficial to your dietary balance. On the contrary, we also encounter several toxic and dangerous forms of mold in our daily lives. Your food pantry, your bread, your fruit basket, the rind of your orange, and the walls of your kitchen themselves are just a few places where these toxic molds can grow—with dangerous and sometimes even life-threatening repercussions for your health.

Estimates suggest that there are anywhere from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of mold species. Covering them all in this chapter is simply impossible. Fortunately, it’s also unnecessary. The most valuable things to understand are why certain molds are dangerous and how you can identify them.

Some molds are visible; others are invisible. Some are helpful; others are extremely dangerous. Regardless of the mold, however, most require certain conditions to spread and thrive. Once you know those conditions, you can avoid them and work toward greater balance in your diet.

The next few pages will explain how molds form, cover the different types of molds that can adversely affect your health, and show you how to manage mold consumption in your diet.

The Dangers of Mold

What are molds, how do they spread, and why are they harmful to our overall health? Molds are composed of pervasive roots—specifically, from stalks rising out of those roots that are capped off with spores. We can see these spores with the naked eye. The spores are what give molds their individual appearances and colors, and they are also the source of the molds’ dangerous effects.

Mold spores spread through the environment through the air. Certain molds, such as those found in some buildings, give off spores that cause allergic reactions and respiratory problems. The presence of mold in a home is rightly a cause for grave concern. Until the molds are eliminated, and their spores cleared from the atmosphere, the environment is toxic.

Many molds have a more pervasive and dangerous effect on our health than simple allergies. Several types of molds produce “mycotoxins,” which, as their name suggests, are extremely toxic. Worse, many molds have extremely intricate root systems, which allow mycotoxins to penetrate far deeper into a substance than the visible spores lead us to believe. Each grain, fruit, tea and coffee plant, herb, and vegetable has its molds— and, odds are, you’re eating them.

Aflatoxin

Aflatoxin is one of the more pervasive and toxic molds out there. This is no surprise given the conditions in which it thrives best. Aflatoxin is found primarily on corn and peanuts, both of which are staples of the modern American diet.

This mold is recognized by the USDA as a cancer-causing poison. So it comes as no surprise that Dr. Hulda Clark’s research uncovered aflatoxin in virtually all of her cancer patients. Aflatoxin also appeared in all of Dr. Clark’s cases of hepatitis and cirrhosis. This mold attacks the body’s immune system, leaving the gates of our defenses wide open to pathogens.

Aflatoxin is not easily cleared from the body because it weakens and kills portions of the liver—the organ that is meant to detoxify our systems. Large doses or continued exposure to this mold will harm your health through its detrimental effects on the liver. That said, it can take weeks for aflatoxin’s effects to be realized, and it is both tasteless and scentless. So how can you know if your food is moldy?

In addition to thriving on corn and peanuts, aflatoxin is also found in your cereal, bread, pasta, nuts, maple syrup, orange juice, and other foods. The good news is that it is not found in dairy, fresh-washed produce, or water. Goods produced in bakeries that are left open to air also don’t contain aflatoxin, and the same is true for products made with carefully screened, deseeded wheat.

In short, given the common American diet, the possibility that you are consuming foods riddled with aflatoxin is very likely unless you take the proper steps to avoid this moldy invader. Dr. Clark advises preparing your own food, testing the foods you can’t prepare yourself, treating foods for molds whenever you can, and getting rid of the rest of it. One of the most important things to understand is that you can’t kill molds through the basic heating or reheating of food. Foods containing aflatoxin must be boiled for several minutes—at a temperature much higher than the boiling point—or else be baked at an even higher temperature in order to kill this mold. So if your food can’t be heated to an elevated temperature, this method will not kill the aflatoxin.

Some industrial research journals suggest treating food ingredients with hydrogen peroxide or metabisulfite, a reducing agent. While the introduction of these chemicals may kill the mold, however, that’s not their only effect. They also damage the nutritional value of your food—not to mention its flavor.

The only natural way to ensure that your food isn’t infested with aflatoxin, as Dr. Clark suggests, is through the use of vitamin C. Be advised that you should use whole-food vitamin C for this, not ascorbic acid. Ascorbic acid is not true vitamin C, but rather a chemical compound, as I will discuss later in this book. Only real vitamin C will have the purifying effect on your food that Dr. Clark identifies.

When baking your own bread, Dr. Clark advises adding a bit of vitamin C to the dough to keep it free of mold for a longer time. In both powdered and liquid forms, vitamin C is an easy way to quickly ensure the safety of your food. Still, be sure to consume the bread quickly, or slice and freeze it to prevent the resurgence of the aflatoxin.

Purchasing commercially available bread is dangerous, since vitamin C can’t be added before baking, and you can’t be sure how long the bread has been sitting on the shelves in a store or bakery since it was made. Other foods are also easy to treat with vitamin C. Rice and pasta can be cleansed of aflatoxin simply be adding vitamin C during or immediately after cooking.

Vinegar can be detoxified as well simply by adding some vitamin C before refrigerating it. You can even rid honey of mold if you heat it slightly and add a few tablespoons of vitamin C to the container.

Some foods, like nuts, need a slightly different treatment. Simply sprinkling vitamin C on nuts or corn will not remove the aflatoxin from these foods because they have already been penetrated by molds. Nuts have to be washed and covered with water that has been mixed with vitamin C powder. After five minutes, the vitamin C has detoxed the nuts and they can be dried in the oven using low heat.