Antonelli, Antonella, Bianchi, Marzia, Fear, Elizabeth Jane et al. · Nutrients · 2025 · DOI
This review examines how natural plant-based compounds, particularly polyphenols, might help manage fibromyalgia pain without the side effects of traditional medications. Fibromyalgia and ME/CFS are related conditions that involve abnormal pain signaling in the nervous system, persistent fatigue, and sleep problems. The authors suggest that natural products could be safer alternatives to current drugs like antidepressants and anticonvulsants, which can cause dependence and tolerance over time.
ME/CFS patients experience similar central nervous system-mediated symptoms to fibromyalgia and often suffer adverse effects from standard psychiatric medications. This review highlights the potential for natural compounds to address pain and fatigue while avoiding dependence and tolerance—concerns particularly relevant to the ME/CFS population, which frequently reports medication intolerance. Exploring alternative management strategies is critical given the limited effectiveness of current pharmaceutical approaches in CSS conditions.
This narrative review does not provide direct clinical evidence that specific nutraceuticals effectively treat ME/CFS or fibromyalgia in humans; it is a theoretical framework rather than a systematic analysis of clinical trial data. The review does not demonstrate causation between polyphenol use and symptom improvement, nor does it establish superiority over existing treatments. Individual patient responses to natural products vary significantly, and the bioavailability and safety of specific compounds remain incompletely characterized.
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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Primary citation
Antonelli, Antonella, Bianchi, Marzia, Fear, Elizabeth Jane, Giorgi, Luca, & Rossi, Luigia (2025). Management of Fibromyalgia: Novel Nutraceutical Therapies Beyond Traditional Pharmaceuticals.. Nutrients. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17030530
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-antonelli-2025-management-fibromyalgia,
author = {Antonelli, Antonella and Bianchi, Marzia and Fear, Elizabeth Jane and Giorgi, Luca and Rossi, Luigia},
title = {Management of Fibromyalgia: Novel Nutraceutical Therapies Beyond Traditional Pharmaceuticals.},
journal = {Nutrients},
year = {2025},
doi = {10.3390/nu17030530},
note = {PubMed: 39940388},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/antonelli-2025-management-fibromyalgia},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-27. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/antonelli-2025-management-fibromyalgia
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