Autoimmune thyroid disease is a disease of the thyroid gland due to autoimmunity in which the patient’s immune system attacks and damages their thyroid. Hashimoto thyroiditis is a form of autoimmune thyroid disease. With this disease, your immune system attacks your thyroid. In this disease, thyroid-reactive T cells are formed that infiltrate the thyroid Read More…
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble nutrient that plays an essential role in immune function by affecting numerous cells that regulate the immune system response. It specifically enhances the fighting or defense response of certain types of white blood cells which results in decreased inflammation. The T cells of the immune system or “killer cells” will not Read More…
Scleroderma is an autoimmune disease that involves the hardening and tightening of the skin, connective tissues, and other organs such as the lungs, kidneys, gastrointestinal system, and heart. This is a result of abnormal and excessive collagen (fibrous protein) production. Scleroderma affects women more often than men and most commonly occurs between the ages of Read More…
A friend posed this question to me the other day. This pandemic has really given me the opportunity at this point in my life to reflect on how I have grown as a person during this crisis. What do I realize about life, myself? 1) I NEED more time to be a “mom” while being Read More…
Life can be stressful especially during this current time as the world fights through the coronavirus pandemic. Also, many individuals living with a chronic autoimmune disease have stress with dealing with their diagnosis, fluctuating disease course, and taking multiple medications to control their disease. Stress is the body’s response to threatening and harmful scenarios. The Read More…
The first time I ever heard the word Systemic Lupus Erythematosus or “Lupus” I was in my third year of medical school. I encountered a young African American female in her twenties and we eventually became friends. She always felt tired and she described the feeling as having the flu all the time. She simply Read More…