Illness once dismissed as ‘yuppie flu’ has genetic causes: study

Tired all the time? It might be in your DNA.

A new study has uncovered striking genetic differences in people suffering from a devastating illness that causes extreme exhaustion, chronic pain and brain fog that can last for months, years or even decades.

Researchers are calling the discovery a “wakeup call” that could finally shift public perception of the poorly understood condition, once dismissed as a “ fashionable form of hypochondria ” and labeled the “ yuppie flu ” by doctors, despite its often debilitating effects. 3

Chronic fatigue syndrome , also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis or ME/CFS, is believed to affect 67 million people worldwide — including an estimated 3.3 million Americans .

Until recently, little was known about what causes the crippling illness, w