The Danger of Having Chronic Imbalances in Your Gut Microbiome
Most of this site is about how a chronically imbalanced, unhealthy gut microbiome can cause a large variety of diseases and conditions in the body – and how to fix your gut microbiome so you can live a long life in good health.
80% of the body’s immune system is located in the gut microbiome. When this microbiome becomes unhealthy, it can’t keep the rest of the body healthy. Eventually autoimmune diseases and conditions can develop.
The body’s immune system is designed to seek out and destroy defective and foreign cells like bacteria and viruses. Autoimmunity refers to a failure of the immune system to recognize its own cells and tissues, like your skin or joints, as “self”.
Instead, the immune system releases proteins called auto-antibodies to attack these healthy cells as if they were dangerous invaders.
Some autoimmune diseases target a single organ. An example is Type 1 diabetes that damages the pancreas. Others, like systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), target the whole body. (AARDA, 2019), (CTCA, 2018) & (Watson, 2019)
A serious aspect of autoimmunity: Having one autoimmune disease predisposes you to developing others as you move through life. Many people tell me ,”Oh, I just have a seasonal allergy. It’s nothing serious. I take something for it and am fine.” But there’s good reason to start fixing the underlying cause of that allergy if you’d like to live healthily as you age. The Allegra , Zyrtec, Claritin or whatever you take is just easing your symptoms but it’s doing nothing to cure your allergy.
Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis: An Autoimmune Condition
Here’s my shorthand explanation for what causes autoimmunity and most illnesses in the body:
CHRONIC IMBALANCES IN THE GUT MICROBIOME –> LEAKY GUT –> CHRONIC LOW LEVEL INFLAMMATION IN THE BODY + AN INDIVIDUAL’S GENETIC INHERITANCE –> OVER TIME, CREATE AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES & CONDITIONS
This is a partial list of autoimmune diseases:
Allergies
Eczema
Psoriasis & psoriatic arthritis
Inflammatory bowel disease & syndrome
Celiac disease
Crohn’s disease
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis
Addison’s disease
Graves’ disease
Lupus
Multiple sclerosis
Rheumatoid arthritis
Type 1 diabetes
Myasthenia gravis
Hemolytic anemia
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), aka Lou Gehrig’s Disease
Ankylosing spondylitis
There are many more – all preventable. The American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association (AARDA) publishes a list of over 100 known autoimmune diseases.
Autoimmune diseases are NOT a necessary part of aging. Since they can take decades before they become serious enough to get diagnosed, we’re often told we’re sick because we’re getting older.
A personal note: I and everyone I know has at least one autoimmune disease or condition.
FIX UP YOUR GUT MICROBIOME.
EAT AN ANTI-INFLAMMATORY DIET.
READ MORE ABOUT HOW TO BECOME AND STAY HEALTH.
See the other posts under AUTOIMMUNITY for more information.
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REFERENCES
American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association (AARDA). (2018). There are more than 100 Autoimmune Diseases. See: https://www.aarda.org/diseaselist/
Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA). (2018). The cancer and autoimmune disease connection may increase disease risk, complicate treatments. See: https://www.cancercenter.com/community/blog/2018/10/the-cancer-and-autoimmune-disease-connection
Watson. S. (2019). Autoimmune Diseases: Types, Symptoms, Causes, and More. HealthLine.com. See: https://www.healthline.com/health/autoimmune-disorders
© Copyright 2021. Joan Rothchild Hardin. All Rights Reserved.
DISCLAIMER: Nothing on this site or blog is intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.