What is an autoimmune disease?
A. An autoimmune disease is a disease that occurs when antibodies (immune system proteins that counteract or eliminate foreign substances) react against the body’s own tissues. Examples of other autoimmune diseases include rheumatoid arthritis, Sjögren’s syndrome, scleroderma, Graves’ disease, inflammatory bowel disease, Type I diabetes, and multiple sclerosis. Autoimmunity has a genetic component and may appear in families as different autoimmune diseases.
First, it is important to understand the normal way the immune system functions. The immune system is the body’s normal defense system against foreign or non-self invaders, such as infections from the environment or tumors from within the body. A normal immune response includes making antibodies and causing inflammation in an effort to rid the body of the foreign intruder. Common examples of the normal immune system at work are the production of antibodies or proteins that one makes against infections, such as chicken pox, when you are first exposed to the virus. Then, the chicken pox antibodies protect you against having the infection a second time when you are exposed to the virus again. An example of inflammation that you can see is acne, where the skin becomes red and painful, and then develops into a pimple as the body’s response to bacteria and other foreign debris present on the skin surface. Once we know how the immune system is supposed to work, we can begin to understand what
