“As a clinical nutritionist and former autoimmune sufferer, I have a deep understanding of the complexity of autoimmune disease biochemistry. Just as importantly, I understand its emotional and neurological toll on the patient.”
Autoimmunity is a condition in which the body’s own immune system (via white blood cells) begins attacking its own tissue. A person will not develop an autoimmune “disease” until they develop symptoms, regardless of how much damage has occurred to their body. This is important to realize, since autoimmune reactions can persist for at least 12 years before a person develops an autoimmune disease. Once the gene for an autoimmune disease is expressed (or switched “on”), the gene will always remain turned on. Therefore, the goal in all autoimmune patients is to “dim” the gene down, or in other words, put the disease into remission.
In the scientific literature there are currently 80 known autoimmune diseases today, and this number is expected to rise dramatically over time. This is due to the fact that once a patient is autoimmune to one tissue, they are more susceptible to becoming autoimmune to another. The most common autoimmune diseases today include:
Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Lupus
Crohn’s Disease
Type 1 Diabetes
Psoriasis
Celiac Disease
Grave’s Disease
Multiple Sclerosis
Sjogren’s
Ulcerative Colitis
Myasthenia Gravis
Psoriatic Arthritis
Brain Autoimmunity
The gateway to developing an autoimmune disease is a compromised gut barrier, also known as “leaky gut syndrome”. This occurs when the proteins that hold the intestinal lining together break down, leading to “leaks” or “gaps” in between the intestinal cells. This allows free passage of microbes, toxins, and undigested food particles into the bloodstream, where the immune system must find and eliminate them. Over time, the immune system becomes over-burdened from the debris leaking through the gut and starts making mistakes. These mistakes ultimately lead to the destruction of the body’s own tissue and the development of an autoimmune disease.
Because there is no cure for autoimmune disease (only remission), traditional medicine’s approach involves prescription medications to manage the patient’s symptoms. Unfortunately, these medications do not always put the disease into remission and come with many unwanted side effects. As a clinical nutritionist, it is my job to identify the underlying triggers to a patient’s autoimmune condition (through proper laboratory testing) and remove those triggers through specific dietary and lifestyle changes.