Lacasa, Marcos, Alegre-Martin, Jose, Sentañes, Ramon Sanmartin et al. · Nutrients · 2023 · DOI
This study tested whether a supplement made from yeast beta-glucan combined with vitamin D, B6, and zinc could help people with ME/CFS feel less mentally tired and think more clearly. Over 36 weeks, 65 ME/CFS patients took either the supplement or a placebo pill, and researchers measured changes in cognitive fatigue using a standard questionnaire. The group taking the beta-glucan supplement showed meaningful improvement in mental fatigue compared to the placebo group.
Cognitive dysfunction and mental fatigue are hallmark symptoms of ME/CFS that significantly impair patients' daily functioning and quality of life. This is the first controlled trial suggesting that beta-glucan supplementation may provide symptomatic relief, potentially offering ME/CFS patients an accessible nutritional intervention to explore alongside standard care.
This study does not prove that beta-glucan works, only that it showed statistical improvement over placebo in one measurement. It does not establish the mechanisms by which beta-glucan might help, nor does it prove the effect would be sustained long-term or work for all ME/CFS patients. The study's modest sample size and single-center design limit generalizability.
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
Lacasa, Marcos, Alegre-Martin, Jose, Sentañes, Ramon Sanmartin, Varela-Sende, Luisa, Jurek, Joanna, & Castro-Marrero, Jesus (2023). Yeast Beta-Glucan Supplementation with Multivitamins Attenuates Cognitive Impairments in Individuals with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial.. Nutrients. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15214504
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-lacasa-2023-yeast-beta,
author = {Lacasa, Marcos and Alegre-Martin, Jose and Sentañes, Ramon Sanmartin and Varela-Sende, Luisa and Jurek, Joanna and Castro-Marrero, Jesus},
title = {Yeast Beta-Glucan Supplementation with Multivitamins Attenuates Cognitive Impairments in Individuals with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial.},
journal = {Nutrients},
year = {2023},
doi = {10.3390/nu15214504},
note = {PubMed: 37960157},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lacasa-2023-yeast-beta},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-26. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lacasa-2023-yeast-beta
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