Muscle Pain: What Should I Do?

by Eric Bakker N.D.

A viewer asked me, “Why do I have an achy and sore body even though I don’t do any strenuous exercise. Is it Candida? “If you’ve got body pain, it’s good to determine where the body pain is. How severe it is, the frequency, how often do you get it? How long you’ve had it for? All of these questions are very important. There are many reasons why people get body pain despite not exercising. If you were my patient, the first question I would have for you is, “What about your digestive health?” I want to know if you have any bloating, gas, constipation, or diarrhea. Do you have any food intolerances? Have you had antibiotics and, if so, when and for how long?

I really want to know if antibiotics have destroyed or partially destroyed the gut’s beneficial bacteria. Many other drugs can cause a problem for the gut, including acetaminophen, oxycodone, sleeping pills, anxiety pills, proton pump inhibitors, and statin drugs.

The first thing that comes to mind when clients complain of body aches, but they haven’t been exercising is leaky gut. Another possibility is fibromyalgia.

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I recommend getting a comprehensive stool analysis (CSA) through your naturopath or medical doctor. The CSA will reveal the microbiology in your digestive system. It will also measure inflammatory markers, blood, and mucus. You may also want to do a SIBO breath test and a lactulose/mannitol permeability test to determine if the gut is leaky.

If fibromyalgia is a possibility, I would suggest testing adrenal, thyroid, and hypothalamic function. I do very extensive thyroid testing, including thyroid antibodies, TSH, T3, T4, and iodine levels.

The pharmaceutical medication T3 can have an incredibly powerful effect on reversing body pain with fibromyalgia. Literally, within a week, I had a patient who could barely lift

their arms suddenly improve significantly. I’ve seen it right in front of my eyes. It was mind-blowing.

The bottom line when you have an unexplained symptom is that you need to investigate before you treat.

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About Eric Bakker N.D.

Eric Bakker ND has completed almost ten years of study and has almost almost 25 years of clinical experience in natural and integrative forms of medicine, and has pursued continuous post-graduate study in Australia, America, India as well as in New Zealand.

Eric is the past Vice President of the NZ Natural Medicine Association and is currently on their editorial advisory board.