Theoharides, Theoharis C, Stewart, Julia M, Hatziagelaki, Erifili et al. · Frontiers in neuroscience · 2015 · DOI
This review discusses 'brain fog'—trouble thinking clearly, concentrating, and remembering—which affects people with ME/CFS and other conditions. Researchers suggest brain fog may be caused by inflammation and immune cells releasing harmful chemicals in the brain. A natural compound called luteolin, which has anti-inflammatory properties, shows promise in early studies for reducing brain fog symptoms.
Brain fog is a cardinal symptom in ME/CFS, and understanding its inflammatory mechanisms could identify new treatment targets. If mast cell activation and microglia dysfunction are confirmed as causal in ME/CFS, natural anti-inflammatory compounds like luteolin could offer a relatively safe therapeutic avenue worth rigorous testing.
This review does not establish that luteolin is an effective treatment for ME/CFS, as no ME/CFS-specific trial data are presented. It does not prove causation between mast cell activation and brain fog, only proposes a mechanistic hypothesis. The preliminary results cited in autism and mastocytosis cannot be directly extrapolated to ME/CFS without dedicated clinical trials.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
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