Why People With One Autoimmune Disease Often Develop More
One of the patterns we often see with autoimmune disease is that it rarely occurs alone.
If someone has one autoimmune condition, there is a high likelihood that they either already have, or will eventually develop, additional autoimmune diseases.
Many patients come into the clinic with a long list of diagnoses—rheumatoid arthritis, thyroid disease, multiple sclerosis, lupus, or others. At first glance these may appear to be separate problems, but in many cases they are connected.
Autoimmune disease occurs when the immune system receives signals that something in the body is a threat. In response, the immune system increases inflammation and begins attacking what it believes are harmful targets.
The problem is that the body may begin misidentifying its own tissues as the enemy.
Once that process begins, it often does not remain limited to a single organ or tissue. The immune response can expand and begin affecting multiple systems throughout the body.
This is why autoimmune diseases frequently occur in clusters.
In functional medicine, we focus on identifying the underlying dysfunction that leads to this immune confusion. One framework we often consider is dysfunction within the M.I.L.A. axis, which includes the mitochondria, immune system, lymphatic system, and autonomic nervous system.
When these systems are not functioning properly, the body may develop chronic inflammation and immune dysregulation that contributes to autoimmune disease.
If treatment only focuses on suppressing symptoms, the underlying dysfunction remains. Over time, this can increase the likelihood that additional autoimmune diseases will develop.
If you would like to learn more about how we approach autoimmune remission, we will be hosting an Autoimmune Remission Seminar on April 18th at 9 AM at the Holiday Inn in Cody.
During this seminar we will explain the root causes of autoimmune disease and the strategies we use to restore balance to the immune system.