Managing Autoimmunity: Functional Medicine Insights for Women

If you’re a woman dealing with an autoimmune condition, chances are you’ve felt limited by conventional medical treatments. Perhaps you’ve tried medications, but they don’t seem to truly alleviate your symptoms or restore your quality of life. Living with unpredictable flare-ups, chronic fatigue, and unexplained aches and pains can feel exhausting.

The truth is that conventional medicine has limitations when it comes to autoimmunity. It often focuses on symptom management without addressing the underlying drivers of autoimmunity.

As a certified functional medicine practitioner specializing in autoimmunity for women, I’ve helped hundreds of women move beyond symptom management to achieve real relief and regain control over their health. Here’s how functional medicine offers a different, integrative approach to autoimmunity that could help you, too.

Autoimmune Disease: Functional Medicine vs. Conventional Medicine

In conventional medicine, treatment for autoimmune diseases often targets the specific body part or system affected. For example, a woman with rheumatoid arthritis may see a rheumatologist to address joint inflammation, while someone with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis consults an endocrinologist for hormone support.

Functional medicine, on the other hand, approaches autoimmunity as a full-body, interconnected process rather than isolated symptoms. Research reveals that autoimmune diseases share a common root cause: an overactive immune response marked by the excessive production of inflammatory compounds called cytokines. These cytokines are primarily driven by T helper 17 (Th17) cells, which play a significant role in autoimmune responses.

In autoimmune conditions, the immune system shifts into an overproduction of Th17 cells, leading to ongoing inflammation. However, Th17 cells are “plastic,” meaning they can shift in response to environmental and lifestyle factors. Functional medicine leverages this plasticity by addressing the underlying factors that provoke an overactive immune system, aiming to bring Th17 cells and inflammation back into balance.

Through a targeted, four-step approach, functional medicine helps you uncover and manage the root causes of an overactive immune system, guiding you toward lasting relief.

Step 1: Understanding the Autoimmune Triad

Dr. Alessio Fasano, a renowned researcher, identified three factors that contribute to autoimmune diseases:

1. Genetic Susceptibility
2. Increased Intestinal Permeability (often called “leaky gut”)
3. Environmental and Lifestyle Triggers

While we can’t change your genetics, we can work on improving gut health and identifying environmental triggers that worsen your symptoms. Addressing these factors can ease symptoms and, in some cases, even slow or reverse the progression of autoimmune conditions.

Step 2: Addressing Diet and Lifestyle

An anti-inflammatory diet is a cornerstone of the functional medicine approach. Functional medicine practitioners work with you to create a dietary and lifestyle plan tailored to your unique needs. Often, this involves eliminating common inflammatory foods while focusing on nutrient-dense options like vegetables, fruits, and healthy fats.

Stress management is also crucial. Chronic stress directly impacts immune function, so integrating relaxation techniques like yoga, meditation, or even simple breathwork can make a profound difference in managing your condition.

Step 3: Healing the Gut

Gut health is central to managing autoimmunity. Research links increased intestinal permeability with a range of autoimmune conditions. As functional medicine practitioners, we assess whether gut imbalances or infections are triggering inflammation in your body. Specific probiotics or other supplements may be recommended to help restore balance to your gut microbiome, healing intestinal permeability and easing autoimmune symptoms.

Step 4: Supporting Immune Regulation with Targeted Supplements

Supplements can be valuable tools in managing autoimmunity, but they’re not magic bullets. We use them to support, not replace, the foundational work of diet, lifestyle, and gut health. Once we’ve identified triggers and optimized other areas, the right supplements can help fill gaps and provide additional immune support. We choose supplements that suppress the overaggressive Th17 immune response.

In functional medicine, the combination of diet, lifestyle, gut healing, and the appropriate supplements creates a holistic, sustainable approach to managing autoimmune conditions.

Take the Road to Remission

If you’re frustrated by the limited options in conventional medicine and ready to explore a deeper approach, functional medicine could be the answer. As an autoimmune specialist for women, I have over two decades of experience and firsthand knowledge of autoimmune challenges. I invite you to consider my Road to Remission program, where we’ll work together to develop a personalized plan to manage and improve your autoimmune condition.

With functional medicine, you don’t have to navigate autoimmunity alone. Relief, and a renewed sense of control over your health, are within reach.