Chronic Illness

Chronic diseases are already the major cause of death in almost all countries, and the threat to people’s lives, their health and the economic development of their countries is growing fast. Effective and cost-effective interventions, and the knowledge to implement them, have been shown to work in many countries. If existing interventions are used together as part of a comprehensive, integrated approach, the global goal for preventing chronic diseases can be achieved. The only question is how governments’, the private sector and civil society can work together to put such approaches into practice. If they do so the global goal for chronic disease prevention and control will be achieved and millions of lives will be saved.

https://www.who.int/chp/chronic_disease_report/full_report.pdf

What Is a Chronic Disease?

Stephanie Bernell and Steven W. Howard

Within professional communities (i.e., medical, public health, academic, and policy), there is a large degree of variation in the use of the term chronic disease. For example, the Centres for Disease Control (CDC) classify the following as chronic diseases: heart disease, stroke, cancer, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and arthritis. The Centres for Medicare and Medicaid Services have a more extensive list of 19 chronic conditions that includes Alzheimer’s disease, depression, and HIV, to name a few. This difference, within the Department of Health and Human Services alone, although not surprising to those in the field, has the potential to create confusion and misunderstanding when speaking in generalities about the impact of chronic disease, the cost of chronic disease, and overall measures to reduce chronic disease.

The World Health Organization states that chronic diseases,

are not passed from person to person. They are of long duration and generally slow progression. The four main types … are cardiovascular diseases (like heart attacks and stroke), cancers, chronic respiratory diseases (such as chronic obstructed pulmonary disease and asthma) and diabetes .

However it is generally agreed that Chronic Illness can be defined by:-

• complex causality, with multiple factors leading to their onset
• a long development period, for which there may be no symptoms
• a prolonged course of illness, perhaps leading to other health complications

Fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia, also called fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS), is a long-term condition that causes pain all over the body.

Symptoms of fibromyalgia

As well as widespread pain, people with fibromyalgia may also have:

• increased sensitivity to pain
• extreme tiredness (fatigue)
• muscle stiffness
• difficulty sleeping
• problems with mental processes (known as “fibro-fog”), such as problems with memory and concentration
• headaches
• irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a digestive condition that causes stomach pain and bloating

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/fibromyalgia/

Benefits of Exercise for Fibromyalgia

As extreme tiredness (fatigue) and pain are 2 of the main symptoms of fibromyalgia, you may find that you’re not able to exercise as much as you’d like.

But an exercise programme specially suited to your condition can help you manage your symptoms and improve your overall health.

Your GP or physiotherapist may be able to refer you to a health professional who specialises in helping people with fibromyalgia work out an exercise plan.

The plan is likely to involve a mixture of aerobic and strengthening exercises.

Aerobic exercise

Aerobic activities are any kind of rhythmic, moderate-intensity exercises that increase your heart rate and make you breathe harder.

Research suggests that aerobic fitness exercises should be included in your personalised exercise plan, even if you cannot complete these at a high level of intensity.

A review of a number of studies found aerobic exercises may improve quality of life and relieve pain.

As aerobic exercises increase your endurance (how long you can keep going), these may also help you function better on a day-to-day basis. 

Resistance and strengthening exercises

Resistance and strengthening exercises are those that focus on strength training, such as lifting weights.

These exercises need to be planned as part of a personalised exercise programme. If they’re not, muscle stiffness and soreness could be made worse.

A review of a number of studies concluded that strengthening exercises may improve:

• muscle strength
• physical disability
• depression
• quality of life

People with fibromyalgia who completed the strengthening exercises in these studies said they felt less tired, could function better and experienced a boost in mood.

Improving the strength of your major muscle groups can make it easier to do aerobic exercises.