What Is An Autoimmune Disease?
The immune system’s job is to help fight off infections and diseases to keep your body healthy. Unfortunately, this defense system can sometimes go wrong. That defense system can mistake healthy tissue for a foreign invader and will attack it. When this happens, it is considered an autoimmune disease.
There are many autoimmune diseases, such as lupus, celiac disease, multiple sclerosis, Sjogren’s syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, sarcoidosis, Wegener’s disease, or Goodpasture’s syndrome. In all, there are an estimated 80 autoimmune disorders, but they all operate similarly: the body’s immune system turns on itself, causing damage to vessels, joints, muscles, glands, red blood cells, or organs.
Signs and Symptoms of Autoimmune Diseases
Many autoimmune conditions have similar early signs. People tend to experience what feels like cold or flu symptoms. Some symptoms may include fatigue, joint pain, digestive problems, low-grade fever, or swollen glands.
These symptoms may linger or may reoccur more and more frequently. Because these symptoms are so common, and because they’re so mild in the early stages, they often go ignored. However, if untreated, autoimmune systems continue to do damage to healthy tissue, causing more serious health problems as time goes on.
As symptoms get more serious, people may experience extreme fatigue, pain, vision problems, decreased lung function, kidney failure, and other life-threatening conditions.
How the Upper Cervical Spine Affects Autoimmune Diseases
Often autoimmune diseases are treated with immunosuppressants, which help calm down an over-active immune response. Sometimes this brings relief, but the side effects of immunosuppressants can sometimes be worse than the autoimmune disease. One problem is that by suppressing the immune system, you are more at risk for infection and diseases. Chiropractic care attempts to get at the root of the problem for autoimmune patients.
The upper cervical spine consists of the uppermost seven vertebrae, which begin right below the brain stem and run through the neck. There are many vital nerve clusters in this area connecting the brain to the spinal cord. The brain sends signals along these nerve pathways that regulate all the body’s functions, including the immune response.
This area of the spine is prone to injury from jolts, accidents, or poor posture. When the vertebrae are misaligned, it can cause pinched nerves or nerves to be compressed by swelling and inflammation. This causes brain signals to misfire and interferes with the body’s systems functioning properly.
How Our Upper Cervical Care Helps Autoimmune Patients
Our doctors make sure the upper cervical spine is healthy and in proper alignment so that signals from the brain are unimpeded. This helps the body’s natural healing mechanisms kick in, repairing damage and boosting the immune system. By getting the immune system to function optimally, our team at Upper Cervical Chiropractic of Boulder help alleviate symptoms and slow the progress of autoimmune diseases.
Dr. Christina Coblish and Dr. Ryan Moeskau are specialists in the Blair Chiropractic Technique. This technique is focused on the upper cervical spine. Using advanced 3D diagnostic imaging tools, doctors can get a better picture of your spine and can find and calculate misalignments. This enables them to apply low-force pressure more accurately for swift, gentle, precise corrections that hold longer.
The Blair Technique offers patients a safe, drug-free, non-invasive treatment for autoimmune diseases. This can help improve the quality of life and overall wellness for many of our patients. If you have an autoimmune disease, contact us for more information. We see clients in Boulder, Longmont, Louisville, Erie, Lafayette, Broomfield, and Denver in Colorado.