Functional Medicine 

Functional medicine doctors look for the root cause of autoimmune disease and seek to develop lifestyle changes to help support an appropriate/healthy immune response. With the help of a functional medicine doctor you have the opportunity to discover imbalances in the body that put stress on the immune system which perpetuates autoimmunity and triggers “flares” of such conditions. 

Autoimmune diseases cannot be cured, so the goal in functional medicine is to put the disease into remission; this means the disease is silent and not actively and aggressively damaging the tissues it has targeted for destruction. 

Traditional Medicine 

In traditional medicine, autoimmune disease is treated (if treated at all) with powerful drugs to suppress the unregulated immune response. This can lead to the damage of tissues throughout the body and further immune system compromise, infections and cancer. 

Can Virus Infections Trigger Autoimmune Disease? 

Autoimmunity of the nervous system have been linked to chronic virus infections including multiple sclerosis. (3) Virus infections can also cause infection and inflammation of the thyroid gland ultimately leading to thyroid gland autoimmunity. 

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0896841100904840 

Hashimoto’s and Graves’ Disease 

“Viral infections are frequently cited as a major environmental factor involved in subacute thyroiditis and autoimmune thyroid diseases.” Infectious thyroiditis (which includes all forms of infection); can lead to Hashimoto’s disease and hypothyroidism or Graves’ disease (hyperthyroidism).(4) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2654877/   

Once the infection has passed, the immune system continues to carry out its attack against the thyroid gland. This can result in the slow destruction of the thyroid gland, as seen in Hashimoto’s disease. The immune system can also start to make antibodies (called thyroid stimulating immunoglobulin or TSI) that cause the thyroid gland to make too much thyroid hormone resulting in Grave’s disease. 

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and autoimmunity

I often test for past exposure to the EBV, most adults that I test have antibodies to the virus, indicating they have been infected and the virus is still present in their bodies.  This is the virus that causes mononucleosis or “mono” or the “kissing disease.” Most of my patients are sure they have never had mono but they in fact have.

“Recent findings link dysregulation of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) with SAD (Systemic Autoimmune Diseases) development. EBV causes a persistent infection…which enables evasion of the immune defense. A number of immune escape mechanisms and immune-modulating proteins have been described for EBV. These immune modulating functions make EBV a good candidate for initiation of autoimmune diseases and exacerbation of disease progression.” (1) https://www.hindawi.com/journals/jir/2013/535738/ 

Systemic Autoimmune diseases 

Systemic autoimmune diseases (SADs), also called rheumatic connective tissue diseases, include rheumatoid arthritis (RA), Sjögren’s syndrome (SS), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD), systemic scleroderma (SSc), and dermatomyositis/polymyositis (DM/PM).

As you can see, there are many autoimmune diseases that can be caused and exacerbated by virus infections. 

Summary

Autoimmune disease occurs when the immune system has lost control of its functions; it is actually a disease of the immune system; not the tissue it attacks. The root cause is an immune system that is failing to regulate itself and it has made the gravest mistake it can make…attacking your body. Your immune system’s job is to protect you, not destroy you. 

Traditional medicine sees the immune system as unruly and something to be squashed and driven into submission with powerful drugs. The problem with this solution is that other, useful and necessary functions of the immune system are also suppressed or damaged. There are also various autoimmune disease that receive no treatment at all in traditional medicine; Hashimoto’s disease, Vitiligo, Alopecia Areata, Raynaud’s disease…etc. It is a mistake to ignore these diseases because they are diseases of the immune system. Once someone develops one autoimmune disease they are more likely to develop other autoimmune diseases. The “door” to immune dysfunction has been cracked and more problems can develop. 

THE GOOD NEWS within the summary..

The good news is that there is much you can do to help your immune system. Working with immune-friendly and low inflammation diets can have a significant impact on the control of autoimmune diseases. Proper nutrition to support an appropriate immune response, exercise, good sleeping habits, stress reduction and meditation have also been found to be powerful tools. 

The wrong thing to do is nothing. Hoping your immune system problems do not get worse. Hoping the disease goes into remission on its own or relying exclusively on drugs that suppress the good and the bad that your immune system is doing. 

Your mindset also plays a significant role in your ability to manage or not manage your autoimmune disease. The mind can do miraculous things! Placebo is the power of the mind. What you think about and how your see your illness will play a role in your recovery or continued decline in health. 

You are not your disease. You have the power to make a difference. Just because we are not yet able to “cure” autoimmune disease does not mean you can’t significantly improve your health and quality of life. You always have a choice. You get to choose what the rest of your life and health will look like. 

What do you want this to look like? 

You are the author of your life, you responsible for every thought, choice, and action you take…or don’t take. What story have you been writing? How will the rest of your story read? 

If you would like some more information on autoimmunity, below is link to a blog from Dr. Mark Hyman. He is a well-known figure in the world of functional medicine. 

https://drhyman.com/blog/2010/07/30/how-to-stop-attacking-yourself-9-steps-to-heal-autoimmune-disease/

Bibliography

Draborg, A. H., Duus, K., & Houen, G. (2013). Epstein-Barr virus in systemic autoimmune diseases. Clinical & Developmental Immunology, 2013, 535738-535738. Retrieved 5 29, 2020, from https://hindawi.com/journals/jir/2013/535738 (1)

Ercolini, A. M., & Miller, S. D. (2009). The role of infections in autoimmune disease. Clinical and Experimental Immunology, 155(1), 1-15. Retrieved 5 29, 2020, from https://ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmc2665673 (2)

Fujinami, R. S. (2001). Can Virus Infections Trigger Autoimmune Disease. Journal of Autoimmunity, 16(3), 229-234. Retrieved 5 29, 2020, from https://sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/s0896841100904840 (3)

Desailloud, R., & Hober, D. (2009). Viruses and thyroiditis: an update. Virology Journal, 6(1), 5-5. Retrieved 5 29, 2020, from https://ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmc2654877 (4)

The purpose of functional medicine is: 

Understanding how the body works, knowing how and where to investigate health issues, knowing what to look for, understanding the significance of what is found and creating a plan of action to reverse and correct the root cause the health problems.

My wish for you…health, happiness and a better quality of life! 

If you would like more information about functional medicine and integrative medicine or Dr. Sexton go to napervilleintegratedwellness.com

Do your own research, inform yourself and ask lots of questions. When collecting information, you MUST consider the source. There is no shortage of false, misleading, outdated, profit-driven and utterly biased information in healthcare today; even from the most respected sources and organizations. 

This approach to healthcare is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, mitigate, or prevent any disease. This article is for information purposes and is not a substitute professional healthcare services. Contact our office for more information.