Part 1 of an autoimmunity series for Ekoappen by Peter Wilhelmsson, Functional Medicine Naturopath (IFMCP, SNLF). 

Autoimmune diseases – a family of symptoms, disorders and syndromes

Autoimmune diseases are a collection of many diseases with similar causes and triggers. Among the most common of the autoimmune diseases are: Graves’, Hashimoto’s, M.S., Celiac disease, Rheumatoid arthritis, Psoriatic arthritis, Crohn’s, Ulcerative colitis, Type 1 diabetes, Lupus, Sjögren’s and Vitiligo. What these have in common is that your own immune system misinterprets and attacks your own healthy tissue. Antibodies, white blood cells and inflammatory processes attack your own tissue in a similar way as they are programmed to do with diseased cells, foreign proteins, dangerous microbes or other invaders. This breaks down specific body tissues and leads to symptoms and chronic diseases.  

Immune weapons target ourselves instead of just enemies

Autoimmunity is characterized by the loss of some self-regulatory functions of the normal immune system. White blood cells oscillate between over- or under-activity in a way that is detrimental to our health. They can mistake our own tissues as enemies and attack our own organs, tissues, or cells. Autoimmune antibodies impair a normal strong response to an invader, and signal immune cells to break down specific tissues, for example, thyroid tissue (Hashimoto’s or Graves’), joint tissue (rheumatoid arthritis), the myelin sheath/protection of our nerve cells and spinal cord (M.S.), insulin-producing cells in the pancreas (type 1 diabetes), mucus-producing glands (Sjögren’s), skin pigment (Vitiligo), and small joints (Psoriatic arthritis).  

I focus on several of these in this autoimmune series. I identify both similarities and differences in terms of: causes, triggers and mediators of processes that start and maintain these conditions. I describe several of these diseases in upcoming series of articles but I start by describing the family of autoimmune diseases to which they belong. I describe these from my naturopathic and functional medicine perspective.  

The more severe the problem, the more important it is to find and address underlying causes that fuel the development of the disease. In addition, it is important for the patient to make a combination of several necessary and powerful lifestyle changes, such as a specialized diet, personal development, sleep hygiene improvement, stress management, removal of toxins from their environment, regular exercise and the right type of exercise, encouraging and healing relationships, and working with the right medical advice and treatment.  

Read also: Peter Wilhelmsson: “Get rid of allergies and hypersensitivities through lifestyle”

My functional medicine perspective

Functional medicine founder, biochemist Jeffrey Bland founded functional medicine in the early 1990s after many years of teaching at universities and training doctors and therapists. His functional medicine knowledge and perspective grew from years of collaboration in the 1980s with the winner of 2 Nobel Prizes, Linus Pauling. I have attended functional medicine courses for almost 30 years, taught at several of their international conferences so the approach is quite deep in my spinal cord. I have also had the privilege of applying the approach and methods among patients in my medical practice. I know from experience how powerful it is to work with natural, lifestyle-based treatment methods from a functional medicine approach.  

A functional medicine perspective based on lifestyle medicine and the physiological, mental and spiritual needs of the human being

Functional medicine is not a particular specific treatment, therapy or tool. It is an approach that involves investigating and untangling interacting multifactorial causes of problems. It then applies a combination of measures that are judged to best slow and stop a pathological progression. This includes measures to restore normal physiological function and improve the quality of life of the individual. For example, 10 different people suffering from rheumatoid arthritis may receive completely different combinations of treatments depending on the causes of their problems. However, all treatments take into account the common need for healthy lifestyle habits as a long-term complement. This is true whether it is a combination of surgery and medication, nutritional supplements, herbal medicine, amalgam removal, or a series of chiropractic, cranio-sacral, shiatsu or acupuncture treatments.Sustainable health is based on a lifestyle medicine approach. All medical treatments and interventions have been shown to work better and last longer if we have all the basic needs, as described both in Maslow’s pyramid as well as at my top 8 lifestyle/self-care areas:  

Functional medicine can also be seen as a framework, structure or system to better understand underlying causes and apply multimodal strategies in chronic complex diseases and syndromes. Besides healthy lifestyle as an important foundation for a healthy life, there are many different examination devices, lab tests, physical examinations, questionnaires, a timeline of events during and after your mother’s pregnancy, childhood and throughout adult life. These are used to identify the causes, triggers and mediating factors that have influenced and influence the development of diseases and problems. Together with the knowledge and experience of the physician/therapist, these can be important pieces of the puzzle in guiding people to better health. Jeffrey Bland emphasized in his book, The Disease Delusion, that knowing the causes of a diagnosis can often be more important than the name of the diagnosis.  

We are Self-Healing, Self-Cleaning and Self-Regulating 

Functional medicine, as its name describes, is also based on restoring and managing healthy functions. Sanna Ehdin wrote a best-selling classic: The Self-Healing Man about 30 years ago. The book has been translated into various languages and helped millions of people to better health and insight into the body’s amazing self-healing functions.When body, mind and spirit get the resources they need, the body is both: self-healing, self-regulating and self-cleaning. Sana’s latest book on water fasting emphasizes that we are self-purifying, that we have the drive for purification and healing and regulation within us, which can be supported and awakened.  

Helping people with autoimmune diseases is very much about helping the immune system find its way back to healthy self-regulation. It does this very well by removing obstacles that stand in the way and providing resources that are lacking for self-regulation-self-correction. The health of the body is completely dependent on billions of different chemical reactions every second. The body’s self-intelligence is outstanding and does the best with the resources or treatments you give it. There is an inner quest for balance and health to help the body return to its natural self-purification, self-healing and self-regulation. I believe that in chronic illness, our job and responsibility as doctors, therapists, healers and stewards of the body, mind and spirit is to remove obstacles and add resources that enhance the body’s self-purification, self-healing and self-regulation. Believing that we can and should “cure all diseases” with modern medical inventions and medicines can easily become a trap because of the view that we control and set instead of listening and supporting. It is probably better to have a more humble attitude and to realize that the body heals itself when we do what we can to help, and not get in the way too much.  

Read also: Peter Wilhelmsson: Discover the herbs in your neighborhood

Removing barriers and satisfying needs can be better than curing

In all chronic diseases and autoimmune conditions, the body can often be helped to self-heal, self-cleanse and self-regulate by removing key causes and obstacles, and replenishing our key nutritional and lifestyle needs. Although autoimmune diseases differ somewhat from each other, especially in terms of the tissues and functions affected, functional and natural medicine has found that there are usually several of the following interacting causes/barriers that can be addressed. This is to reduce or stop the progression while supplementing with nutrition and lifestyle improvements. Functional medicine pioneer, Dr. Sidney Baker advises that in all disorders and diseases, one should always ask and address the following two questions: What am I short of? and What do I have too much of? Integrative physician Dr. Sherry Rogers sees great success with disorders and diseases by understanding and addressing three basic underlying causes:  

1) Remove barriers in the form of toxins and infections.

2) Filling nutritional gaps and imbalances. 

3) Addressing poor lifestyle habits. 

This wise advice can be applied to all chronic diseases and especially to autoimmune diseases. They usually emerge and develop because of years of obstruction by infections and toxins that have caused the immune system to run amok and start breaking itself down.  

Upcoming articles

The following three parts below, in this series, are some of the most powerful in stopping the breakdown that occurs in autoimmunity and restoring a healthier immunity and state of health. These include infections, environmental toxins, detox, diet and supplements that usually reverse a negative downward spiral of suffering and poor quality of life. Then there are always other bad lifestyle habits that will make symptoms and problems worse if not addressed, but my focus in this series of articles will be mainly on what I see as the three most important measures to slow down and stop autoimmune diseases:  

1) Change your diet and take the right amounts of the right supplements.

2) Identify and reduce the burden of infections, external environmental toxins, and internal waste products through short-term and long-term detox/purification regimens. 

3) Improve gastrointestinal functions, kill aggressive foreign microbes, and create a good gut flora/microbiota.

In the series on autoimmunity, I will go through different themes. These will provide keys to anyone who longs for better health, especially when it comes to autoimmune diseases. Next time we will look at how the right type of diet and the right combination of supplements can make a big difference in autoimmune conditions. Each month for the next six months, we will address the following theme on the Eco App and in-depth information following the series is available to members on my website powhealthplus.com

Part 2 Autoimmunity: Diets and supplements in autoimmunity

Part 3 Autoimmunity: Infections, endotoxins, environmental toxins and detox

Part 4 Autoimmunity: Gastrointestinal function and microbiotics

Part 5 Hashimoto’s and Graves

Part 6 Rheumatoid arthritis and Psoriatic arthritis

Part 7 MS and Sjögren’s

By Peter Wilhelmsson

For more information on Peter’s courses and books, as well as references for articles in the autoimmune series, see https://powhealthplus.com/medlemsportal/artiklar/.

POW Health Plus