I am reading an excellent article in Medscape. It discusses the gut microbia and its connection to autoimmune diseases. The article focuses on MS, but also discusses the gut microbia in relationship to other autoimmune diseases. It is an in depth article, but very well worth the read.
To access this article, search for Medscape. Pick the official Medscape site. On the left side of the page are various categories. Pick Rheumatology. On the lower right hand side are Most Popular. You will see thae article entitled The Gut-Brain Connection. If it does not show up there, you can also go to the search box at the top right and type in the title.
You will need to register to read the articles. Registration is free. They will ask you what your profession is. Pick any of the medical professions listed. They don't verify it.
Medscape has excellent articles, published research, etc.
You can also choose various categories so that you are automatically notified about any new articles relating to categories. They will notify you by e-mail and there will be a list of articles you can read as well as the article that is concerning your chosen category. I picked about 20 categories and get frequent notifications.
You can also scroll down the list of categories (Rheumatology, Dermatology, Allergy and Immunology, etc. and look at all of the past articles and read them. I think Medscape is an invaluable resource for us and it is free.
Title of the article is The Gut-Brain Connection.
The GI tract is so involved in autoimmune issues because it has so many mucus secreting glands and these get so involved in the Sjogrens even though the docs don't always acknowledge it. Alsos do a search on images lymph nodes in the abdominal cavity and you will be amazed at the number of them.
The GI tract is a hot bed for all sorts of things. Also, the brain gut connection is important in regards to depression and stress that is transmitted and results in the colitis type diseases. Those are multicomplicated but it is amazing how much it helps to take antidepressants to quiet things down. Irish
Thanks for sharing. The gut is wonderfully and terribly complex so I don't envision answers soon (I've tried the diets and food elimination to no avail), but am glad researchers are exploring this territory.
It may help to also recall that the gut is affected by more than food, our emotions play a significant role in our gut health, aka gut instincts, bad feeling in the pit of my stomach, etc.
Jasper, I've read a lot of articles on this topic too. It's funny, all of these auto immune conditions came up for me after I'd had colitis for a few years. I think it's all related. But, some auto immune diseases also run on both sides of my family, so maybe we were a little prone to them in the first place. Thanks for the article!