Castro-Marrero, Jesús, Segundo, Maria Jose, Lacasa, Marcos et al. · Nutrients · 2021 · DOI
This study tested whether taking two supplements together—coenzyme Q10 and NADH—could help reduce fatigue and improve quality of life in people with ME/CFS. Over 200 patients took either the supplements or a placebo for 12 weeks. The group taking the supplements reported feeling less mentally tired, slept better, and experienced improvements in their overall quality of life compared to the placebo group.
ME/CFS currently has no approved treatments, making any evidence-based intervention potentially valuable for patients with severely limited treatment options. This study suggests a well-tolerated, accessible supplement combination may offer meaningful symptom relief, particularly for cognitive fatigue—a hallmark feature of ME/CFS that significantly impacts daily functioning.
This study does not prove CoQ10 and NADH are universally effective or curative; benefits were modest and measured through patient perception rather than objective biomarkers. The mechanism by which these supplements might work remains unexplained, and it does not establish whether benefits persist beyond the short study period or in different ME/CFS patient populations.
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
Castro-Marrero, Jesús, Segundo, Maria Jose, Lacasa, Marcos, Martinez-Martinez, Alba, Sentañes, Ramon Sanmartin, & Alegre-Martin, Jose (2021). Effect of Dietary Coenzyme Q10 Plus NADH Supplementation on Fatigue Perception and Health-Related Quality of Life in Individuals with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Prospective, Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial.. Nutrients. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13082658
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-castro-marrero-2021-effect-dietary,
author = {Castro-Marrero, Jesús and Segundo, Maria Jose and Lacasa, Marcos and Martinez-Martinez, Alba and Sentañes, Ramon Sanmartin and Alegre-Martin, Jose},
title = {Effect of Dietary Coenzyme Q10 Plus NADH Supplementation on Fatigue Perception and Health-Related Quality of Life in Individuals with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Prospective, Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial.},
journal = {Nutrients},
year = {2021},
doi = {10.3390/nu13082658},
note = {PubMed: 34444817},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/castro-marrero-2021-effect-dietary},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-26. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/castro-marrero-2021-effect-dietary
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