Porter, Nicole S, Jason, Leonard A, Boulton, Aaron et al. · Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.) · 2010 · DOI
This review looked at 70 research studies testing complementary and alternative treatments for ME/CFS and fibromyalgia. The researchers found that most studies (86%) reported at least some positive effect from the treatments tested, with acupuncture, meditation practices, and supplements like magnesium and L-carnitine showing the most promise. However, the quality of these studies varied widely, making it difficult to draw firm conclusions about which treatments actually work.
Many ME/CFS patients use complementary and alternative treatments, yet these approaches have been largely absent from systematic medical reviews. This study fills that gap by comprehensively surveying what research evidence exists, helping patients and clinicians understand which alternatives have scientific support worth pursuing and which need more rigorous study.
This review does not establish that any alternative treatment definitively works for ME/CFS or fibromyalgia, as the included studies had inconsistent methodologies and quality issues. Finding that a treatment showed some positive effect in a study does not mean it will work for individual patients or is better than conventional approaches. The review also does not evaluate the individualized, multi-modal treatment approaches that many practitioners actually use in clinical practice.
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
Porter, Nicole S, Jason, Leonard A, Boulton, Aaron, Bothne, Nancy, & Coleman, Blair (2010). Alternative medical interventions used in the treatment and management of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia.. Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.). https://doi.org/10.1089/acm.2008.0376
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-porter-2010-alternative-medical,
author = {Porter, Nicole S and Jason, Leonard A and Boulton, Aaron and Bothne, Nancy and Coleman, Blair},
title = {Alternative medical interventions used in the treatment and management of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia.},
journal = {Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.)},
year = {2010},
doi = {10.1089/acm.2008.0376},
note = {PubMed: 20192908},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/porter-2010-alternative-medical},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-28. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/porter-2010-alternative-medical
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