A comprehensive approach to autoimmune diseases

Autoimmune diseases develop when our body's immune system attacks our own tissues. (Ankylosing spondylitis, coeliac disease, Crohn's disease, Graves' disease, thyroiditis, myasthenia gravis, multiple sclerosis, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma, Sjogren's syndrome, systemic lupus erythematosis, ulcerative colitis, vitiligo). The current medical approach is to suppress the immune system to reduce the damage to the tissues, usually with very powerful drugs (steroids, immunosuppressives, cytotoxics). In addition to the significant side-effects, these simply attempt to control the symptoms and play little part in preventing the underlying disease and damage.
By adding simple complimentary therapies designed to assist in the immune process, we can make an enormous difference to the outlook for these patients.

To understand why these treatments work, a very basic understanding of the immune response is necessary, I will try and make this a simple as possible and it is worth persisting if you can.
1. When we are exposed to any form of outside threat (virus, bacteria, toxin etc.)  the 1st reaction of the body is to create heat (fever), swelling with an increase in blood supply and white blood cells rush to the area. At the same time APCs (antigen presenting cells) detect the invader and rushed to the immune system around the body.
2. The APCs instruct the immune system to create 2 types of cells – T helper cells, and T reg cells. There are a number of types of T helper cells (cytotoxic, suppressor, killer,) and all of these attack the invader and hopefully destroy it.
The T reg cells are a bit like the brakes on a car to tell the T helper cells to slow down. Many autoimmune diseases are caused by insufficient T reg and the T helper cells start attacking the cells of our body.
3. The gut plays a crucial role in our immune response. Almost 70% of our immune system is in the gut (the gut associated lymphoid tissue GALT) and thus the majority of immune interactions occur in the gut.

By approaching all 3 of these immune responses (the T helper cells, the T reg cells and the GALT) we can fight immune diseases very much more comprehensively and with a much higher chance of success with less toxicity.
1. Suppressing the T helper cells is what modern medicine does with its powerful drugs. It would be much better for the natural brakes to be put on by the T reg cells.
2. A number of natural products are known to increase the T regs and thus should reduce the T helper cells production. These products include curcumin, botswellia, vitamin D, zinc).
3. Changes in the bacteria in the gut  affects the gut immune system (GALT), and can affect the balance between the T helper cells and the T reg cell production.  Probiotics (especially lactobacillus rhamnosus LGG) have been shown to increase the production of T reg cells and thus dampen down the excessive immune response.

Conclusion – I apologise that this may be somewhat complicated but I think it's worth sharing this information. It also makes for a much better and holistic therapy approach to patients with autoimmune disease:

• Regularly take a probiotic containing LGG.
• Regularly take tumeric (curcumin) and possibly boswellia
• Take other natural products which can reduce inflammation – omega-3 fish oil, vitamin D and zinc.
• Medical drugs as recommended by your doctor, but ask for the minimal dose necessary as the above therapies start to take an effect.