All Posts tagged Female Diseases

Autoimmune diseases are a group of more than eighty chronic, often disabling, illnesses. These diseases are caused by underlying defects in the body’s immune system, which is a complex network of cells and organs that defend the body from outside invaders such as bacteria, germs, and viruses. While these disorders are not limited to the female population, they disproportionately affect women. Nearly 80% of those affected by autoimmune diseases, about 8% of the U.S. population, are women.

The immune system functions by differentiating between what is normal for the bodily system and what is an outsider. An autoimmune disorder causes the body to create autoantibodies that attack normal cells by mistake while regulatory T cells fail to correct the immune system imbalance. When this happens, the immune system is attacking the body from within.

Who is at risk?

Autoimmune diseases can affect anyone; researchers have identified certain risk factors. Women of childbearing age are most at risk for autoimmune disorders. Those with a family history of autoimmune disorders, especially lupus and multiple sclerosis, are more susceptible to them. Certain environmental factors, such as sunlight, chemical solvents, and bacterial and viral infections are linked to some autoimmune disorders.

What are the most common autoimmune disorders?

While there are many autoimmune disorders that affect women, four of the most common and debilitating are multiple sclerosis (MS), lupus, rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and scleroderma.

• MS affects 250,000 to 350,000 people in the U.S., almost twice as many women as men. It causes varying degrees of neurological impairment, such as paralysis, tremors, lack of coordination and balance, and numbness and tingling in extremities. While symptoms are treatable, there is no cure or definitive cause.
• Lupus is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease that can affect the joints, skin, blood cells, heart, and lungs. It can also cause fever, weight and hair loss, fatigue, rashes, headaches, and dizziness. Out of the 1.5 million people afflicted with lupus in the U.S., 90% are women, and it is more common in black, Hispanic, Native American, and Asian women than Caucasian women.
• RA affects about 1.3 million people in the U.S., twice as many women as men. It is an inflammatory disease that causes pain, swelling, stiffness, swollen and deformed joints, and reduced movement and function. It may also be accompanied by fatigue, fever, weight loss, eye inflammation, anemia, and lung disease.
• Scleroderma entails an overproduction of collagen in the skin and blood vessels, leading to an abnormal growth of connective tissue that can interfere with the functioning of affected organs. Additional symptoms include thickening of the skin, pain and stiffness in fingers and joints, shortness of breath, and diarrhea or constipation. More women than men are among the 40,000 to 165,000 affected by scleroderma in the U.S.

While there are no cures to these and other autoimmune diseases, there are types of both over-the-counter and prescription medications that relieve symptoms, replace vital substances the body cannot make on its own, and suppress the malfunctioning immune system. Patients also utilize various alternative treatments, such as herbs, chiropractic treatments, acupuncture, and hypnosis. Women should be encouraged that even though their autoimmune diseases might not go away, the conditions can be managed and should not prevent them from living full, active lives.