Immune System & Inflammation - a Gabes pondering

CathyMaine · Post by **CathyMaine** » Mon Apr 23, 2012 9:13 am

I am another one that rarely if ever got sick before being diagnosed with LC. I have worked in a school system for over 18 years and am exposed to everything and always chalked it up to building immunity to all sorts of flus, bugs, etc.

Post by **tex** » Mon Apr 23, 2012 11:00 am

Gabes wrote:they may not be having any MC symptoms, but they are still having immune/inflammation reactions.

IMO, (and according to my research), you are right on target.

Tex

Zizzle · Post by **Zizzle** » Mon Apr 23, 2012 12:25 pm

Here's one smoking gun -- mercury levels higher in women with autoimmune disease:

http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/ ... -antibody/

Leah · Post by **Leah** » Mon Apr 23, 2012 4:44 pm

All of this is fascinating because after I went to see the endochronologist and had all my immmoglobulin levels tested and explained to me, I think I have a better understanding of our immune system. I do have Selective IgA Deficiency ( Deanna, have you been tested for that?) and am also low on two of the classes of IgG. Cortisol level is fine, so no adrenal problem. The doc sent me to a forum for people with the same thing. Almost ALL of them have many colds, flus, and upper respiratory infections. I don't. What I do have is three autoimmune diseases. I am being told that most likely, all of them are because of this deficiency. I don't have all the histamine reactions many people have here. I wonder if that is the result of an OVERACTIVE IMMUNE SYSTEM instead of an under active one. ???

Leah

Kari · Post by **Kari** » Mon Apr 23, 2012 5:05 pm

Gabes - unfortunately, I think you are on to something - every time I think I'm really on the mend, another issue pops up :(.

Tex - sounds like you have a logical answer to this mystery - you're keeping us in suspense :).

Over the years, I have definitely had fewer colds and flus than most people. Besides head colds, I can only recall one really bad flu, and one really bad stomach virus. I left my career after 30 years with 250 accumulated sick days that I never availed myself of, and I got no credit for them :(.

Leah - that's exactly what I was thinking while reading this thread - over active immune system!!!

Love,
Kari

Post by **tex** » Mon Apr 23, 2012 6:36 pm

This issue of resistance to viruses comes up rather regularly here on the board. I'm beginning to wonder if the genes that predispose to MC might provide increased resistance against viruses.

Love,
Tex

Deanna in CO · Post by **Deanna in CO** » Tue Apr 24, 2012 7:49 am

Leah,

No, I haven't been tested for selective IgA deficiency (yet), though my PCP has an order in for it now, so I should be able to get that done in the next day or two. Dr. Lewey was not happy that they hadn't tested for that when they did my celiac bloodwork either time - he actually said the celiac stuff was "no good" without a test proving IgA levels were normal. (I can only imagine that's even more true for you, given you also have documented low IgG levels.)

I've been putting off the IgA test briefly until I could get my Dr to order vitamin D, B12, and folate levels. I asked for those yesterday, so if she's ordered them, I will get the blood work done in the next day or two.. Does anyone know whether it's better to do any of this stuff fasting, or does it matter?

Deanna

Post by **tex** » Tue Apr 24, 2012 10:54 am

Hi Deanna,

Unless your doctor is also going to order testing for blood lipid levels, (triglyceride, cholesterol, etc.), it shouldn't matter whether you eat anything, or not, for the tests that you named.

Tex

Leah · Post by **Leah** » Tue Apr 24, 2012 1:53 pm

I could eat for my tests.

hoosier1 · Post by **hoosier1** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 1:28 pm

Hi Gabes,

I still get sick, but sometimes I confuse it with my LC issues. But I do feel this LC has reprogrammed my immune system. I also know I run a very low white count and that did not use to be the case.

I think you are onto something.

Rich

mzh · Post by **mzh** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 2:20 pm

Add me to the no colds in many years category. (I was an elementary instrumental music teacher and was subjected to who-knows-what from that.)

BUT - my microscopic colitis kicked in after a severe case of the flu in 2/02 and it's still around. Not terrible but around.

The next time I got a cold was in 2/07. (Geez, Feb is a bad month for me.) Two weeks later my cecum twisted and I needed surgery ASAP. They didn't do it for 18 hours and I suffered needlessly from that ordeal and lost more colon than I should have. So, colds are not a good thing for me; something major seems to happened afterwards.

Is this a case of an over-active immune system?

Marcia