Is your immune system working for you? Or against you?
Your immune system is as remarkable as it is complex. After all, it’s your body’s 24/7 watchdog. When the immune system functions properly, it distinguishes friends from foes – normally mounts a powerful response to infections, viruses, bacteria, pathogens or diseases that may enter your body. Simply put, it’s what prevents you from getting sick, and also what helps you feel better if you do fall ill.
But, as counter-intuitive as it may seem, the immune system sometimes gets confused or turns against itself, like a dog biting the hand that feeds it. When the immune system attacks the very body it’s meant to protect, it causes autoimmune disease. This often complicates health issues even further because your body’s defense systems are working against it. If not addressed, issues will most likely worsen.
Common Autoimmune Conditions
There are hundreds of autoimmune diseases and they can affect almost any part of the body. This is the list of the most common types and we see them at our practice quite frequently:
Alopecia (areata, totalis, universalsis)
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Celiac Disease
Pernicious Anemia
Type 1 Diabetes
Crohn's Disease
Scleroderma
Ulcerative colitis
Grave's Disease
Multiple Sclerosis
Hashimoto's
Lupus
Psoriasis
Telogen Effluvium
Possible Causes
Autoimmune diseases have a strong inflammatory component – the result of the immune system revved up to respond to what it considers a threat.
We all know that chronic stress, sleep deprivation and a poor diet can weaken our immune system, but there are other factors that might cause the immune system to act in such a misguided fashion...
Nutrient Deficiencies
Hormonal Imbalances
Food Allergies, Sensitivities, and intolerances
Toxins (example: heavy metals, mold, chemicals & more)
Chronic Infections
Overuse of Antibiotics/Drugs
Increased Intestinal Permeability (Leaky Gut Syndrome)
Poor Digestive Function (up to 80% of the immune system is located in the gut)
How we can help
Like other health conditions, there are so many protocols, nutritional and supplement plans online that all this information can be overwhelming and paralyzing. Our approach figures out which one is best for you. By incorporating our detailed intake questionnaire, nutrient assessment, personalized protocol, customized food plan and targeted supplement program, we’ll provide you with actionable steps you can take to support and rebalance your immune system to get your body’s defense force back into action.
Labwork
Functional lab testing to dig deeper to understand exactly what is contributing to your immune dysregulation.
5-R Program
Determine your triggers and work together to strengthen your body’s recovery by working through each phase.
Personalized Protocol
Connecting the dots between your symptoms, history and lab results is key to creating the best protocol tailored to your body, needs and goals.
The First Step
Autoimmunity does not happen over night. It is a result of a unresolved stresses on the body and a failed attempt to return to homeostasis. Each attempt creates inflammation which leads to tissue destruction that can lead to the body tagging that tissue as harmful. This is where we roll up our sleeves and do heavy duty detective work to identify the challenges that led to such a damaging immune response.
A comprehensive health history will help you and I to put your symptoms, health history, and family history into context that allows us to connect the dots to the what and why your health is at the challenging place it is today. It will provide you with a timeline as well as matrix that prioritizes the systems with the highest burden. We can use this to help you create a personalized strategy to tackle autoimmunity head on, empowered with the knowledge to conquer your health!
Have questions if our program is right for you? Book a clarity call today!