Fatigue is generally defined as a feeling of lack of energy and motivation that can be physical, mental or both. Fatigue is not the same as drowsiness, but the desire to sleep may accompany fatigue. Apathy is a feeling of indifference that may accompany fatigue or exist independently. In addition, individuals often describe fatigue using a variety of terms including weary, tired, exhausted, malaise, listless, lack of energy and feeling run down.
Fatigue is common. About 20% of Americans claim to have fatigue intense enough to interfere with living a normal life. A physical cause has been estimated to be responsible 20% to 60% of the time, while emotional or mental causes comprise the other 40% to 80% of cases of fatigue. Unfortunately, fatigue can also occur in normal individuals that experience intense physical or mental activity (or both).
However, in contrast to fatigue that occurs with some diseases and syndromes, normal fatigue in healthy individuals is quickly relieved in a few hours to about a day when the physical or mental activity is reduced. Also, people occasionally experience fatigue after eating (sometimes termed postprandial depression) which can be a normal response to food, especially after large meals and this may last about 30 minutes to several hours.
Fatigue Symptoms
Fatigue, either mental or physical, is a symptom that usually has some underlying cause. Fatigue may be described by people in different ways, and may include some combination of the following (both mental and physical):
weakness,
lack of energy,
constantly tired or exhausted,
lack of motivation,
difficulty concentrating, and/or
difficulty starting and completing tasks.
Other symptoms such as fainting or loss of consciousness (syncope), near-syncope, rapid heartbeat (palpitations), dizziness or vertigo may also be described as part of the fatigue experienced by the affected individual. The presence of these symptoms may actually help lead a health care practitioner to discover the underlying cause(s) of the fatigue.
Fatigue Causes
The potential causes of fatigue are numerous. The majority of diseases known to man often list fatigue or malaise as possible associated symptoms. This is complicated by the fact that fatigue can occur in normal healthy individuals as a normal response to physical and mental exertion. However, normal fatigue may begin to become abnormal if it becomes chronic, extreme or prolonged fatigue; usually this occurs when a person experiences chronic or prolonged physical or mental exertion. For example, unusually hard physical or mental exertion for one day can result in normal fatigue that may last about a day or sometimes more, depending on the exertion level, while daily unusually hard physical or mental exertion may result in prolonged fatigue (usually greater than 24 to 48 hours). This latter situation may develop into abnormal fatigue.
How to Cure for Fatigue
There are numerous cures for chronic fatigue syndrome, but is advised that patients must consult their doctor before taking in any medication. Among the most common category of medications to treat chronic fatigue, anti-depressants are the most popular.
That is because anti-depressants surely help patients relax more even with their feeling of restlessness due to the onset of the viral disease.
However, there are also many forms of diet that can effectively help curtail the disease.
Diets for chronic fatigue
To start with, a patient can take a water cure diet. This form of diet is the simplest and can be easily executed as long as the patient is disciplined enough and determined.
The water cure diet would see that the patient must take water that is equivalent to half of the body's weight. For example, the body weighs 150 lbs. The patient must then take ounces of water daily that is equivalent to 75 lbs.
It is also recommended that the patient take in at least a quarter of salt for about every quart of water that he drinks. The salt can also be used in food.
There is no restrictions in food intake, but the water cure diet restricts patients from drinking alcoholic and caffeinated beverages because they are diuretics.
Recommended food to include in diets
No special diets other than water cure is recommended for chronic fatigue patients. However, the patients are advised to avoid food groups that are considered toxic to the body.
These food group includes aspartame (a synthetic form of sugar), refined oils, food additives, chlorinated water, margarine and hydrogenated fats, junk foods, alcoholic and softdrinks and chocolates.
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Instead, experts advise chronic fatigue patients to include the following in their food intake: organic food, sea vegetables, olive oil, lemonade, maple syrup, seaweeds, vegetable juices, unrefined sea salt, and foods that are rich in essential fatty acids.
Knowledge of how the food replenishes the body will greatly help a patient understand more about the usual food and substances that are recommended to help the body cope up and recover from chronic fatigue.
Overall, it is also most recommended that you avoid the disease, because, as they say, an ounce of prevention far outpaces pounds of cure.
Sticking to the normal, healthy lifestyle would surely boost the function of the body's immune system, making it more resistant to the future onset of the disease.
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