What Makes the Immune System Attack Itself?

04 Dec What Makes the Immune System Attack Itself?

Over 23 million Americans suffer from autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, thyroid disease, fibromyalgia, etc. These diseases occur when the immune system stops playing the role of defense Mechanism and begins to attack the body instead. The immune system attacks cells, tissues, and organs weakening their functions and, in some cases, turning life-threatening.

So, what makes the body’s best friend suddenly turn on itself and start attacking the very cells and tissues it had been protecting? Unfortunately, there are still many gray areas that doctors do not understand about autoimmune diseases. For now, they only have theories about the cause of autoimmune diseases. However, If you or a loved one has an autoimmune disease, these theories could help you find the answers you must be desperately searching for.

According to top rheumatologists, some of the factors that might cause autoimmune diseases are infections, tissue damage, and genetics.

Infections and Diseases

A healthy immune system is charged with protecting the body against viruses and infections. When it senses that the body is in trouble, it springs to action immediately to neutralize the threat. At times, when this aggressive attack is in progress, the body’s own cells and tissues are caught in crosshairs, resulting in one autoimmune disease or the other.

Researchers believe mistaken immune response is the cause of rheumatoid arthritis, a type of arthritis characterized by the immune system attacking the joints. After having strep throat, some people also develop psoriasis, an autoimmune system characterized by patches of thick and scaly skin. Researchers believe that while trying to get rid of strep throat, the immune system might cause some damage to healthy tissues and organs, resulting in psoriasis. 

Thirdly, when the immune system tries to fight off cancer cells, a residue inflammatory response may result in scleroderma. This autoimmune disease causes the skin and connective tissues to thicken. R3’s stem cell therapy Phoenix centers have treated hundreds of autoimmune disease cases. You or your loved one could also benefit from this state-of-the-art, regenerative procedure.

Injury and Stress

According to scientists, another possible cause of autoimmune diseases is stress and injury to certain body parts. For example, in psoriatic arthritis, joint injury in psoriasis causes more adverse reactions. Some studies have also shown that tissues and organs that get continuously stressed may be susceptible to autoimmune diseases.

Genetics

Genetics is another possible culprit in autoimmune disease. Researchers have not established a reason for the connection between the two,  but they are certain that having specific genes could result in autoimmune diseases. For instance, people with family histories of lupus or multiple sclerosis have greater chances of developing the diseases than those with no family history.

However, having a family history of an autoimmune disease is not a certainty that you will have the same disease and that if you do have it, the cause is genetics.

In addition, traditional treatments procedures, like surgeries and medication, only seek to manage the symptoms of many autoimmune diseases. But regenerative procedures, like stem cell therapy, seek to treat the underlying tissue damage for a better patient prognosis.

Please book an appointment with our Phoenix stem cell treatment centers. Let us help you through the pain so you can return to everything you love doing.