Infections include viruses such as HIV, herpes, the common cold, influenza, and so forth. Also included are bacterial invaders like strep, and staph, and fungal infections such as Candida Albicans. There is no way for us to avoid most infectious agents; our best and only defense against them is a strong immune system. It is said that there approximately 10 billion bacteria living the average person's intestines; many of these are normal. In fact, we need certain bacteria to produce vitamin K in the gut. However, when our immune system is weakened, then opportunistic infections can arise, and can cause a variety of symptoms. In our clinical experience dealing with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia we often see patients who are suffering from a number of low-grade infections of varying types, contributing to muscle Pain and fatigue.