Fatigue

Fatigue

Fatigue refers to a feeling of tiredness or weariness. It can be temporary or chronic. Almost

every person has to work overtime on certain occasions, sacrificing rest and sleep, which may

cause temporary fatigue. This condition can be remedied by adequate rest. Chronic or

continuous fatigue is, however, a serious problem which requires a comprehensive plan of

treatment.

Chronic fatigue can result from a variety of factors. A specific character trait, compulsiveness,

can lead to continuous fatigue. Many persons constantly feel that they cannot take rest until they

finish everything that needs to be done at one time. These persons are usually perfectionists,

tense and cannot relax unless they complete the whole job, no matter how tired they may be.

Causes

The chief cause of fatigue is lowered vitality or lack of energy due to wrong feeding habits.

Fatigue is an indication that the cells of the body are not getting sufficient live atoms in the food

to furnish them with a constant flow of needed energy. The habitual use of refined foods such as

white sugar, refined cereals and white four products as well as processed, tinned and preserved

foods have a very bad effect on the system in general. Foods ‘denatured’ in this way are

deprived, to a very great extent, of their invaluable vitamins and minerals. Such foods lead to

nervousness, tiredness, obesity and a host of other complaints prevalent today.

Certain physical conditions can cause fatigue. Anaemia is a very common ailment leading to

tiredness. It is known as ‘tired blood’ disturbance. In anaemia, very little oxygen reaches the

tissues with the result energy cannot be produced normally. This causes constant tiredness and

mental depression. Anaemia usually results from deficiencies of iron and vitamin B12.

Sometime deficiencies of vitamin B6 and folic acid are also involved.

Insomnia or lack of sleep can be a cause of torturing fatigue. Sleep induced by sleeping pills and

other drugs does not banish fatigue. Intestinal parasites can also lead to fatigue as they rob the

body of good nourishment and gorge themselves on rich red blood. Other ailments which can

cause fatigue are low blood pressure, low blood sugar, any kind of infection in the body, liver

damage, a sluggish thyroid and allergy in foods and drugs caused by additives including artificial

flavours, colours and preservatives.

Mental tension is one of the major causes of fatigue. A person who is tense and cannot relax

has all the muscles of his body more or less contracted. This leads to needless waste of

unusually large amounts of energy. Food is continuously burnt, lactic acid accumulates more

rapidly than it can be carried to liver for conversion to body starch. Persons who are high-strung,

nervous and irritable usually suffer from this type of fatigue.

Treatment

Nutritional measures are most vital in the treatment of fatigue. Studies reveal that people who

eat small mid-meals suffer less from fatigue and nervousness, think more clearly and are more

efficient than those who eat only three meals daily. These mid-meals should consist of fresh or

dried fruits, fresh fruit or vegetable juices, raw vegetables or small sandwich of whole grain

bread. The mid-meal should be small and less food should be consumed at regular meals. They

should be taken at specified time such as 11 a.m. , 4 p.m. and before retiring to bed.

The patient should eat health foods which supply energy to the body. Charles De Coti Marsh of

Londonin his book ‘Prescription for Energy’ prescribes foods to relieve fatigue and gain energy.

He says, “ Regenerating must begin with foods..... They must be taken in their natural state.

These cereals are corn seeds, wheat seeds, rye seeds, maize seeds, barley seeds and oat

seeds. They must be freshly milled. In uncooked cereals, we do have one perfect food for

perfect health which contains essential vitamins and energy creators.” In addition to cereal

seeds, Marsh recommends fresh raw nuts taken directly from the shell and root vegetables. He

says, “Any seed or root vegetable that will grow again will renew human vitality.”

The patient should take an optimum diet made up of (i) seeds, nuts and grains, (ii) vegetables,

and (iii) fruits. Roughly, each food group should supply the bulk of one of the three meals.

Sprouting is an excellent way to eat seeds, beans and grains in raw form. Sprouting increases

the nutritional value of foods and many new vitamins are created or multiplied in seeds during

sprouting. The patient should supplement the three health-building food groups with special

protective foods such as milk, high quality cold-pressed unrefined vegetable oil and honey.

The patient should also take natural vitamin and mineral supplements as an effective assurance

against nutritional deficiencies, as such deficiencies have been found to be a factor in fatigue.

Lack of pantothenic acid, B vitamin in particular, leads to extreme fatigue as deficiency of this

vitamin is associated with exhaustion of the adrenal glands.

In fact the entire B-complex protect nerves and increases energy by helping to nourish and

regulate glands. The vegetarian foods rich in vitamin B are wheat and other whole grain cereals,

green leafy vegetables, rice polishing, milk, nuts, banana, yeast, pulses and peas.

Minerals are also important. Potassium is especially needed for protection against fatigue. Raw

green vegetables are rich in this mineral. Calcium is essential for relaxation and is beneficial in

cases of insomnia and tension both of which can lead to fatigue. Sodium and zinc are also

beneficial in the treatment of fatigue.

Raw vegetable juices, especially carrot juice, taken seperately or in combination with juices of

beets and cucumbers, is highly valuable in overcoming fatigue. The formula proportions

considered helpful in the combination juice of 500 ml. are carrot 300 ml. and beet and cucumber

100 ml. each.

The patient should avoid depending for an energy lift, on crutches such as taking aspirin,

tranquilizers and other drugs, drinking coffee or alcohol, smoking , eating some sugar or sweets.

They give only a temporary boost and this is soon followed by a downward plunge of energy,

Leaving a person worse than before. .

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