Many thanks for taking the time to give me such informative replies. I apologise for not replying sooner; I havent been online.

Sean, I'm sorry to hear you're having such a rough time and I hope things improve for you very soon.

Nicola, many thanks for telling me your personal experiences and also for the details of LivingNetwork. It has lots of useful info on there.

Birdlady: Ian Solley's protocol was the one used by a nutritionist to cure him of CFS. He didnt actually devise it, but he has a website on which he sells an eBook describing the protocol.

Essentially it places huge emphasis on a LOT of supplements. Chlorella features very highly as do high dose multi-vits, products to clear out the colon (which worked so well that I felt like I'd been punched in the stomach after I started taking them. I was doubled up in pain. I also couldnt leave the house for 3 weeks after first starting them because I never knew when I'd need a toilet - sorry.... a bit too much info, but I'm trying to give you an idea of how these products can affect you.)

They also feature fatty acids of various descriptions to rebuild cellular membranes. At one point I was taking over 50 pills/day and had to draw up a spreadsheet to keep track of what I needed to take and at what times.

In theory there is nothing wrong with the supplements except that in the 6 months I spent on this program I spent thousands of pounds buying products. Ian Solley claims on his website that it wont cost thousands to implement; well, that's not the truth.

It used to scare the heck out of me when I would have to place another order for supplements because I was building up credit card debt that I had no way of paying off (and in fact,I'm still paying off).

The biggest problem as I see it is that the diet is not designed to heal a sick body. You're allowed to eat;
- green leafy veg/salad leaves
- meat (red meat, poultry)
- eggs
- some dairy produce (butter, cream, yoghurt)
- you also had to take a VERY expensive protein drink (not just any old whey product, but a particular brand)

Essentially thats it. Not only do you cut out the usual problem foods like sugar, caffeine etc, but you are not allowed to eat;

- grains of any description (no oats, wheat, rye etc)
- no fruit of any description
- no veg "grown beneath the ground", ie potatoes, carrots
- no beans (according to them, not high enough in protein, which by the way is not true)

Thats just an overview; the list of forbiddens is very long!

A vegetarian would not be able to do this diet.

Anyone who understands basic nutrition is now asking:
- what about fibre?
- what about all that saturated fat?
- what about the micronutrients you lose out when you exclude fruit?

I started this diet in winter, when green leafy veg was non
existent in the supermarkets (and I was in any case, too ill to go grocery shopping). Nutrition is now one of my big passions and I know that a diet which totally excludes fruit cannot give you enough essential nutrients.

Not only that, but despite what you might read, the fructose in fruits does not cause blood sugar problems IF you combine it with a healthy low fat diet. Low fat is the key.

On their detox diet you are eating a lot of saturated fat from the meat, eggs and cream and I dont understand any nutritionist condoning that.

Green leafy foods are essential, but they dont contain enough calories or micro-nutrients to survive on.

Thats all I remember of the diet, but I can tell you that there were days when I physically retched when I cooked myself yet another omelette.

Knowing what I know now about nutrition, I believe I was severely malnourished, despite the high dose multivits. Thats why I say that this diet is in my opinion detrimental to a healing body. You miss out on so many many antioxidants and healing factors when you exclude fruits.

I was also severely ill; I couldnt get to the sink to get a glass of water. I had to force myself to eat and hope I wouldnt throw it up. I was very weak and psychologically disturbed. Unfortunately, the nutritionist I was seeing told me that I just had to stick it out, because (and I quote) "this has never failed".

It also played havoc with my thyroid medication (my thyroid was removed 20 years ago so I take replacement medication). I dont know how or why it did it, but it interfered with my ability to absorb the medication correctly leaving me very severely hypothyroid.

After my experiences with that protocol, I contacted Ian Solley, told him of my experiences and asked that he advise potential clients on his website that there was a possibility of a serious negative reaction. As far as I was concerned, if he was selling an eBook for profit, he had a duty to warn people that they could potentially become very ill on this detox.

He refused to do so because he claimed that I was the only person for whom this protocol had not worked. I was also apparently the only person who had had such a severe time with it. Frankly, I dont believe a word of it.

I can only imagine he thinks that telling the truth will damage his sales.

At that point I lost all respect for him, and havent had anything more to do with either him or the nutritionist in question. These days I work with a professional whom I trust and I'm educating myself about the things I can do help myself.

If anyone is considering undertaking what Ian Solley promotes, please consider what I've said very seriously. I have nothing to gain from misrepresenting my experiences. But he does this for a living.

It is true that I was very angry at both him and the nutritionist for some time, because I realised I had put my trust in people who did not have my best interests at heart. I felt like I'd been betrayed. 2.5 years later, I still have not recovered from the damage inflicted by their protocol.

These days I'm not angry; but I do consider them dangerous hacks. Neither of them intended for me to become so ill, but neither did they bother researching why that happens in some people.

Sometimes carelessness does just as much damage as intentional action.

I hope I dont come across as angry, bitter and twisted, because I'm truly not.:)

Anyway, for me thats all in the past. I am very much looking forward to reading Dr Cutlers book when it arrives. I want to take a far more pro-active approach to getting well, and I think this might be a great starting point.

So again, many thanks to you all for your responses.