Illustration of an autoimmune disease awarness campaign (Flickr/Myostis Support)
Busy busyness is often the main reason a person forgets to take care of his health. How do I set the balance of time to take care of yourself, your family and your career? Especially if you often feel short of time off and experience stress due to the pressures of work in the office, taking care of the household and children at home, or social pressure from the surrounding environment.
These days it is often heard the term "autoimmune" disease, which attacks the immune system of the human body. However, due to lack of awareness and difficulty detecting this disease, then often the treatment is too late and fatal.
Recognize Autoimmune Diseases and Their SymptomsIed autoimmune diseases such as fatigue and joint pain (Flickr/ Karimah Laera)
According to John Hopkins Medicine research, autoimmune diseases occur when the body's natural defense system or immune system can no longer distinguish between normal cells and foreign cells, thus causing the body to mistakenly attack healthy cells. The function of the immune system (antibodies) is to fight bad cells such as germs, bacteria and viruses, not healthy cells.
What symptoms are often felt? Many autoimmune sufferers have similar symptoms, including: fatigue or prolonged fatigue; joint pain, swelling and stiffness in the neck, arms, hands and knees; skin problems such as hives and dryness; abdominal pain or digestive problems; swollen glands; hair loss; And difficulty concentrating.
Autoimmune Diseases In Indonesia - Drugs and supplements needed to reduce the impact of autoimmune diseases (Pixabay / Steve Buissinne)
The level of awareness of Indonesian people against autoimmune diseases is still low so data management does not yet exist. It is currently estimated to number survivors or autoimmune sufferers to the millions, and most are women of productive age.
In addition, autoimmune diseases are not widely understood by the public because of the lack of education and understanding about this disease. What's more, because the symptoms are not specific and there are 80 types of autoimmune diseases that affect various parts of the body.
Some common autoimmune diseases include:
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE): Chronic inflammation of various organs of the body, especially joints, kidneys and skin.
Rheumathoid Arthritis (RA): the immune system that damages joints.
Psoriasis: inflammation of the skin that makes the skin dry, red and scaly.
Type 1 diabetes: The immune system damages the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas.
Thyroid: when the body produces too much thyroid hormone (hyperthyroidism) or does not produce enough thyroid hormone (hypothyroidism) it damages the thyroid gland and affects metabolism.
Until now, the cause of autoimmune diseases has not been known with certainty, but several factors such as lifestyle, environment, weight, genetics and gender are often associated as causes of immune system disorders. Most autoimmune diseases can not be cured because there is no cure, so if complaints are not quickly treated can attack vital organs and cause chronic diseases.
Even so, autoimmune diseases can already be diagnosed through antibody tests, and can also be controlled by following a healthy lifestyle.
5 Healthy Steps to Overcome Autoimmune Diseases
So what can autoimmune patients do or you to relieve symptoms and restore the balance of the immune system?
Here are some steps that can be followed to overcome autoimmune diseases and maintain health:
Sunlight As a Source of Vitamin D
Some studies have found that one of the causes of autoimmune diseases is vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D not only serves to increase bone strength but also maintain immunity.
Sunlight can help produce vitamin D in our body, through the process of synthesis when the skin is exposed to Ultra Violet B (UVB) sunlight. The best time to sunbathe and get exposure to UVB rays is between 10:00 – 16:00 and is done for 5 - 15 minutes depending on skin color. People who are white absorb UVB rays faster than darker skins. But you are not recommended to sunbathe for too long to avoid the risk of skin cancer.
Food Consumption contains Vitamin D
In addition to exposure to UVB rays, to overcome autoimmune diseases, it is recommended to eat foods rich in vitamin D, such as: fatty fish with a high omega-3 content (salmon, tuna, and mackerel); soy processed products (tofu, tempeh and soy milk); milk and its products (cheese and yogurt); telor; mushrooms; And the heart of the cow.
Daily consumption of vitamin D for adults is recommended as much as 600-4000 IU, depending on the need. It is also best to choose natural sources of vitamin D that do not contain preservatives. Gluten-free breakfast menu: avocado, grapefruit, turkey sausage and sweet potato (Flickr/dejahthoris)
For autoimmune sufferers, a gluten-free diet is the best choice to improve the health of the digestive system. Research from John Hopkins Medicine also mentions for autoimmune sufferers, such as celiac disease who consume gluten can damage the small intestine and other organs, making it difficult for the body to absorb nutrients. By eliminating gluten consumption, it can automatically treat autoimmune conditions by reducing intestinal inflammation and leaky gut.
Gluten-containing ingredients such as flour and wheat, which are found in bread, pasta, cereals, pastries, instant noodles, sweeteners and artificial flavorings. Instead, non-gluten food options that can be tried such as: almonds, avocado, olive oil, spinach, broccoli, cabbage, rice (white and red), quinoa, corn, turkey, organic beef and berries. Stretching and yoga are recommended to boost the body's immunity (Pixabay/ Evita Ochel)
Many autoimmune sufferers, such as rheumatoid arthiritis avoid exercise for fear of worsening their symptoms. Safe and recommended sports are walking, cycling and swimming. Stretching movements from yoga and aerobics are also very helpful for flexing stiff joints and experiencing swelling.
Exercise is essential for improving physical fitness and flexibility, especially for strengthening the body's immune system, regulating the hormone system and optimizing the body's cells. Reducing the impact of stress: healthy and happy living (Pixabay/ Free-photos)
There is undoubtedly a huge effect of stress on physical and mental health, especially the body's immune system. Studies from Harvard Medical School report that stress can lead to autoimmune diseases, such as lupus or rheumatoid arthiritis. The study found that the incidence of autoimmune diseases was higher among people previously diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
In addition, stress causes physical, psychological and emotional tension, especially when facing a "fight or flight" response. This response is characterized by an adrenalin rush that causes rapid pulse and breathing, and an increase in blood pressure. For example, when you are chased by a dog or avoid a ticket on the highway. But what if there is prolonged stress triggered by worries, for example because you don't have money, a lot of debt or fear of failure? This condition can cause chronic diseases such as high blood pressure or autoimmune diseases.
So how do you reduce stress? There are many ways to deal with stress and manage unhealthy habits. By following the 4 important steps above, you can also lower stress levels. Exposure to UVB rays from the sun, consumption of foods containing vitamin D and gluten-free, and regular exercise have been shown to reduce stress and depression.
Education and awareness about autoimmune diseases are essential for autoimmune prevention and treatment, as well as improving public knowledge. Like any other disease, preventing autoimmune early on would be much better than having to treat it.
What about you, ready to try? Let's start following the above healthy steps to overcome autoimmune diseases and live a healthy life.
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