An autoimmune disease is a condition in which your immune system mistakenly attacks your body. Fifty million Americans have one or more autoimmune diseases, and that number is on the rise. There are many different autoimmune diseases, including but not limited to multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, celiac disease, lupus, Addison’s disease, and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
Traditional medicine focuses on the symptoms of the autoimmune disease, like treating pain and inflammation with medication. Functional medicine doctors differ in that we try to find the root cause of the autoimmune disease. There are often multiple factors coming together to cause autoimmunity. These could be leaky gut, adrenal fatigue, antibiotics, poor diet, illness, infections, toxins, or even genetic predisposition. Our first step will be to acquire a detailed patient history in order to find clues as to why you have developed an autoimmune disease. This gives us better tools for addressing your problem on the deepest possible level.
Next, we order focused labs to try to find the root cause of your autoimmune disease. The main labs we order are based on three main body systems. They are:
- The neuro-endocrine system, which includes the health of the adrenals – how your body handles stress, thyroid function, sex hormone regulation, cellular energy production, and neurotransmitter activity.
- The gastrointestinal (GI) system, which includes checking for the presence of pathogens and infections, what nutrient deficiencies you have, as well as a look at the overall health of your microbiome.
- The detox pathways, including liver detox, searching for environmental toxins (like lead and mercury), chemical sensitivities, and the overall ability for the body to remove
- Finally, based on your history and labs, we will work together to create a targeted and individualized health plan that works for you. We will combine changes in diet and lifestyle with medical-grade supplementation to restore your health.
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