Here are some more interesting articles, based on Action for ME's survey:

"According to a survey by the charity Action for ME, 55,000 Britons are unable to leave their beds or homes because of the impact of the illness.

(...) "Before having ME, 63% of those questioned worked full-time - compared to 6% after.

(...) "One in 10 adults who get glandular fever will go on to develop ME, according to Action for ME.

"The charity's survey of 2,200 people with ME found that 23% of them were either bed or housebound all the time, with 74% either bed or housebound when their illness was at its worst."

-- Sky News, 1000s Trapped At Home Through ME, Tuesday May 09, 2006 --

To read the full article, click here...

"Published as part of an awareness campaign by Action for ME, [the survey] provides the most detailed analysis of the illness ever carried out.

Trish Taylor, chair of Action for ME, said: "ME robs people of their ability to work and destroys their close relationships. It leaves many sufferers in wheelchairs and some have to be tube-fed."

The survey found that more than one third of the public (35 per cent) has never heard of ME, which is also known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome."

-- Joanna Bale, Mysterious fatigue illness that costs Britain 6bn [GBP] a year, The Times, May 08, 2006

To check out the full article, click here...

"Two-thirds said their friendships had deteriorated as a result of the illness although 27 per cent said their closest relationships had improved.

"More than two-thirds experience pain on a constant or daily basis and nearly three-quarters said the pain was severe when the illness was at its worst."

-- Daily Mail, Thousands of ME victims 'cannot leave home', 9th May 2006 --

To read the full article, click here...

"The survey findings, published as part of Action for M.E.'s campaign: "M.E. - More Than You Know", provide the most up-to-date, detailed analysis on the severity and impact of the illness ever carried out in this country.

"Trish Taylor, Chair of Action for M.E., says: (...) "M.E. is much, much more than feeling 'a bit tired'. And if that is what you believe then today we challenge you to think again. To look with new eyes at those who live with the severe pain and suffering this disease brings.""

-- Hidden thousands devastated by myalgic encephalomyelitis, Medical Condition News, News-Medical.net, 11-May-2006 --

To read the full article, click here...

I hope you find these articles interesting!

Thanks Tracey, for letting us know about these articles! :-)

Claire
Editor of Sleepydust

Claire
Editor of Sleepydust

Here's an interesting article about an MP who is calling for an inquiry into Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (M.E.):

Norwich North MP Ian Gibson has been calling for an inquiry into Myalgic Encephalomyelitis for the last year and the first comprehensive report into the condition will be made available in July.

The inquiry is aimed at dispelling myths that ME is just “yuppie flu” or does not really exist and to carry out more research to establish the causes of the illness.

[Ian Gibson said] "I know many people, some of them GPs, who still believe people with ME are fakes and are making their illnesses up."

-- Sarah Hall, "We Must End 'Yuppie Flu' Myth", Norwich Evening News 24, 11 May 2006 12:07 --

To check out the full article, click here!

I hope you find the article interesting!

Claire
Editor of Sleepydust

Here's an interesting article about Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) / Post-Viral Fatigue Syndrome. that was posted on 15/05/2006 in the Telegraph:

"Prof van der Meer has also found that patients with ME react more to normal stimuli. "They sense more fatigue and more pain. This is about perception, but it is not psychiatry. It is very real and probably at the level of neurotransmitters giving signals that are too strong - as we can see when we do MRI scans on ME patients performing simple tasks."

"Other research has shown excessive levels of cell-damaging free radicals in blood, urine and muscle tissue. And Dr Kerr has identified 100 "faulty" genes."

-- The puzzle of ME moves a little closer to being solved, The Telegraph, 15/05/2006 --

Of particular interest is that the article quotes a Professor Peter White, professor of psychological medicine at Queen Mary School of Medicine, London (who is apparently running the MRC-funded trial into Pacing, Activity and Cognitive behaviour therapy for ME/CFS (the renown PACE trials). The article quotes Peter White as saying:

"CBT has been shown in five trials to be an effective treatment for ME and in uncontrolled studies people who are quite severely disabled have made significant improvements on a GET programme that is tailor-made for the individual."

CBT and GET are areas of great controversy in the ME/CFS community. They are 'grey areas' - some are for them, some are against them.


Check out this post if you want to learn more...

I hope you find the article interesting!

Claire
Editor of Sleepydust