Do you understand autoimmunity?
I have a confession to make peeps.
I’m not as smart as you think when it comes to health and nutrition.
Matter of fact, I had an experience to prove it.
At the beginning of last year, I was looking for a job.
I didn’t want just any job, it had to relate to health.
Luckily, I stumbled upon something which fit the description.
There was one thing standing in my way before I could get an interview.
I had to take an online test.
The test was designed to analyze my knowledge of health and nutrition.
It did just that, as it exposed areas of weakness in my nutritional armor.
One of those areas was autoimmunity.
The question asked, “Which of these aren’t considered an autoimmune disease?”
There were several choices and I just happened to choose type 1 diabetes.
At the time, I had no idea type 1 diabetes was an autoimmune disease.
Upon finishing the test, I took to the internet in a fury researching diabetes.
Sure enough…type 1 diabetes is considered to be an autoimmune disease.
Dang!
How did I get the question wrong?
I knew, at that moment, I needed to tighten up on my autoimmunity.
So, if you’re autoimmune challenged (pun intended) like I was, I’ll help you tighten up as well.
What is Autoimmunity
On a recent interview on Perfectly Healthy And Toned Radio, Dr. Lynn Lafferty revisited and discussed autoimmunity.
She described it as the body attacking itself.
Simple enough, right?
If you need a grandiose definition, autoimmunity is an organism’s immune response against it’s own cells and tissues.
Here are a few autoimmune diseases :
- Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
- Type 1 Diabetes
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Multiple Sclerosis
These are only a few but there’s more… a lot more.
Autoimmune disease is rising and it’s one of the leading causes of death in the U.S.
Interestingly enough, Dr. Lafferty mentioned she didn’t believe in autoimmunity.
She believed it’s a symptom of something bigger…much bigger!
Pay Attention To The Peanut Gallery
I made a conscious decision to eliminate peanut butter and wheat from my diet.
Those decisions, I believe, served me well.
I was able to completely reverse pain in my arthritic knees.
How?
Peanuts contain a fungi known as aflatoxin.
Aflatoxins are part of a family of toxins known as Mycotoxins.
The mycotoxin family includes Ochratoxin, Citrinin, Ergot, Patulin, Fusarium and of course Aflatoxin.
Citrinin is a toxin found on foods such as wheat, corn, barley and oats.
Mycotoxins entering the body can cause an autoimmune response.
Could this be one of the reasons autoimmune disease is on the rise?
In an effort to keep these toxins from affecting the population, the government has acceptable levels measured in parts per million (ppm.)
But…are these acceptable levels acceptable on an individual level?
During the interview, Dr. Lafferty cited research where bacteria, mold and viruses had strong correlation with autoimmune response in test subjects.
Coincidentally, removing peanuts and gluten from my diet may have defeated an autoimmune response in my knees.
Defeating Autoimmunity
If we know the underlying causes of autoimmunity, how can we put an end to it?
Obviously, if there are bacteria, viruses or mold you must take precaution and deal with them
Dr. Lafferty uses herbal antibiotics to assist in eliminating the body of bacteria and toxins.
Herbals can include garlic, pau d’arco, and echinacea.
Herbs of the highest quality should be used when dealing with autoimmunity.
While fighting bacteria is important, healing intestinal permeability is as well.
Intestinal permeability or leaky gut, as it is more commonly known, can trigger autoimmunity.
When leaky gut occurs, it causes foreign particles (undigested protein and antigens) to leak into the bloodstream.
This action overstimulates the immune system and creates the perfect environment for an autoimmune response.
If leaky gut can create it, can it be uncreated?
F.O.O.D.
I’ve coined a new acronym for 2015 called F.O.O.D. or Feed On Obvious Delicacies.
Real food has become extinct and is now a delicacy.
Today, people subsist on diets of heavily processed foods made with grains, inflammatory oils, and sugars.
As a result, intestinal permeability has risen and with it autoimmunity.
I’ve been privy to interviewing many people who sent illness into remission by changing their diet.
The importance of eating real food can’t be understated or underestimated when fighting illness.
Food can be our slowest form of poison or the best form of medicine.
In 2015, we’ve departed from food and embraced food stuffs!
Since we’ve embraced food stuffs disease has run rampant.
Can we…will we…Feed On Obvious Delicacies and put a stop to the rise of autoimmunity?
Now it’s your turn…do you suffer from autoimmunity or an autoimmune disease? What steps are you taking to get rid of it?