Autoimmune Disease
Autoimmune diseases are a broad range of related diseases in which a person’s immune system produces an inappropriate response against its own cells, tissues and/or organs, resulting in inflammation and damage.
There are over 80 different autoimmune diseases, ranging from common to very rare diseases.
Conditions known as Autoimmune Diseases include (and are not limited to):
- Diabetes type 1
- Celiac Disease
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Lupus
- Ulcerative Colitis
- Hashimoto’s thyroiditis
- Grave’s disease
- Psoriasis
- Scleroderma
- Crohn’s Disease
- Vitiligo
Some autoimmune diseases affect mainly one part of the body (such as multiple sclerosis, autoimmune thyroid disease, type 1 diabetes) whilst others can affect many parts of the body (such as systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis and systemic vasculitis).
Autoimmune diseases affect around 1 in 20 people in Australia. With common autoimmune diseases such as thyroiditis, rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes affect more than 1 in 100 people. In contrast, a rare autoimmune disease such as Goodpasture’s disease (a form of vasculitis) affects around 1 in a million people.
Causes of autoimmune disease
Whilst the direct cause of an autoimmune disease may not be known, factors including genetics, gender, environmental toxins, heavy metals, moulds, viruses and bacteria, candida, chronic inflammation, stress and trauma, diet and food sensitivity may all play a role.