Belcaro, Gianni, Saggino, Aristide, Cornelli, Umberto et al. · Journal of neurosurgical sciences · 2018 · DOI
This study tested whether a supplement made from French oak wood called Robuvit® could help people with ME/CFS who experience fatigue, sleep problems, mood difficulties, and high levels of oxidative stress (cellular damage). Eighteen patients took 300 mg of Robuvit® daily for 8 weeks, while 22 others received standard care. The Robuvit® group showed significant improvements in mood, fatigue, sleep, and oxidative stress levels, with no safety concerns reported.
ME/CFS patients frequently experience oxidative stress-related symptoms including fatigue, insomnia, and mood disturbance. This study suggests a natural supplement may address multiple symptom clusters simultaneously through an evidence-based mechanism, offering a potentially safe complementary option for patients seeking symptom management.
This registry does not establish causation—observed improvements could result from placebo effect, regression to the mean, or concurrent lifestyle changes rather than Robuvit® itself. The small unblinded sample and lack of randomization prevent definitive conclusions about efficacy. These findings require confirmation in larger, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials before clinical recommendations can be made.
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 →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Belcaro, Gianni, Saggino, Aristide, Cornelli, Umberto, Luzzi, Roberta, Dugall, Mark, Hosoi, Morio, et al. (2018). Improvement in mood, oxidative stress, fatigue, and insomnia following supplementary management with Robuvit®.. Journal of neurosurgical sciences. https://doi.org/10.23736/S0390-5616.18.04384-9
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-belcaro-2018-improvement-mood,
author = {Belcaro, Gianni and Saggino, Aristide and Cornelli, Umberto and Luzzi, Roberta and Dugall, Mark and Hosoi, Morio and Feragalli, Beatrice and Cesarone, Maria R},
title = {Improvement in mood, oxidative stress, fatigue, and insomnia following supplementary management with Robuvit®.},
journal = {Journal of neurosurgical sciences},
year = {2018},
doi = {10.23736/S0390-5616.18.04384-9},
note = {PubMed: 29938480},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/belcaro-2018-improvement-mood},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-29. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/belcaro-2018-improvement-mood
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