Some insights into disease development, progression and causes
It has been found that autoimmune antibodies, which are reliable predictors for certain diseases, are often detectable up to 6 years in advance to the disease actually manifesting and the patient
developing symptoms (Lesley et.al. 2001). Therefore being able to control the underlying issues that might
be driving these immune changes, such as controlling inflammation through diet, exercise, herbs, nutrients and targeted allergen avoidance, may help to stop the disease from progressing if
detected early enough. Most patients that Susanne sees this trend in her patients who ususally report intermittent or ongoing symptoms, often with a progressive worsening of symptoms, years
before severe conditions develop. Early detection of homeostatic loss is therefore key to preventative medicine, symptoms should not be ignored.
The issue with gluten...
Coeliac disease, an autoimmune conditiontraditionally associated with gastric symptoms is often found as an underlying cause for a wide range of conditions, inlcuding hepatits, cancers, mental health problems.
Gluten is a difficult avoidance and most patients want to have a diagnosis, often only to be able to explain to others why they are avoiding grains. The problem with detecting a problem with gluten is often that despite severe symptoms the patient's blood tests come back as normal, which means that the patient has an intolerance (often referred to as Non Coeliac Gluten Sensitivity) but not fully blown coealiacs disease. In Susanne's practice she has observed many times that patients often do much better when avoiding wheat, or for the more severe cases gluten. Indeed studies have also shown that there is often a deterioration of gastric symptoms with individuals consuming gluten, even though they are not coeliacs (Biesierski et. al. 2011). The improvement can often be very quick- usually worth a try for a couple of weeks.
More to follow...
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