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Many diseases can be avoided either by healthy nutrition or by following the principles of a healthy lifestyle.
Unfortunately, this rule does not apply to autoimmune diseases. They can be triggered by completely ordinary foods, or even by foods considered healthy.
What are autoimmune diseases
Autoimmune diseases occur when our immune system is overactive and, for some reason, begins to treat even healthy cells and tissues as a threat.
Our immunity then starts producing antibodies that mercilessly attack and destroy these healthy tissues and continue to do so regardless of our pain or physical inflammation.
The most common types of autoimmune diseases include:
- rheumatoid arthritis (joint pain and inflammation)
- multiple sclerosis
- type 1 diabetes
- lupus
- Hashimoto’s disease
- inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis)
Some scientists have found that our diet is behind the development of these diseases, usually the consumption of highly processed foods. The cause is their content of various types of salts that excessively stimulate the helper T cells of our immune system.
And the result is not pleasing – almost one in six people currently suffer from some form of autoimmune disease.
If you happen to be one of them, don’t panic!
You can alleviate or even completely cure most of these diseases by identifying the food responsible and then eliminating it from your diet.
Here are 5 foods that most often contribute to the development of autoimmune diseases:
1. Sugar
Processed sugar is a common culprit in these diseases.
This is not only because it constantly sabotages your immune system’s fight against illness, but regulation of its level in the blood often gets out of control.
If you can no longer resist sweets, at least significantly reduce sugar and replace it with honey or natural sweeteners such as stevia.
2. Quinoa
Quinoa is currently a very popular food in various healthy recipes due to its high content of fiber, protein, and iron.
Nevertheless, it is also a relatively risky food regarding the development of autoimmune diseases.
Why?
The culprit is its high saponin content, which causes damage to the intestinal lining, resulting in excessive stimulation of your immune system.
Therefore, if you suffer from or are prone to some autoimmune disease, it’s better to avoid quinoa.
3. Gluten
Yes, the old familiar gluten. Typically only people who suffer from gluten intolerance or celiac disease avoid gluten.
Besides them, those struggling with autoimmune disease should also avoid it.
Gluten even in relatively healthy people increases the chance that your immune system will switch into an over-stimulated mode and trigger an autoimmune disease.
4. Milk and dairy products
It’s good to avoid milk and dairy products nowadays not only because of their content of antibiotics and growth hormones, which are used extensively in cattle farming.
Another reason is that milk, even organic, has the potential to act as an allergen that activates the body’s immune response.
It is usually due to the protein casein, which naturally occurs in all milk and which causes inflammation in the body.
5. Milk chocolate
Unfortunately, although reluctantly, we have to include milk chocolate on this list.
As it is a milk product, regardless of its healthy cocoa content, it often provokes allergic reactions in the body similar to other dairy products.
