There are many lifestyle changes we can make in our every day lives to help autoimmune conditions. First, ask yourself if you believed your autoimmune condition to “run in your family”? Think again. Science is now showing us that that genetic predisposition accounts for only 30% of all autoimmune conditions, while the remaining 70% are a result of environmental factors. 

Keep an eye out for these environmental factors:

  • Avoid exposure to toxic chemicals like mercury and lead
  • Mold is common in many of our households, schools, and workplaces.
  • The products you use for your daily skincare and makeup routine might contain parabens.
  • Be careful when you shop at the grocery store to avoid foods with pesticides.
  • Many plastics and furniture contain phthalates and BPA.
  • Infections
  • Stress
  • Your diet influences your immune health, try to fill up on nutrient dense foods!
  • Overly sterile environment
  • Vitamin deficiencies
  • Be aware of your gut health. Poor gut diversity and leaky gut could be direct indicators of your immune health.

That being said, there is good news. While we don’t have control over genetic predisposition, we DO have control over environmental factors. Our bodies are capable of fighting autoimmune conditions, we just need the right tools in place. In my most recent Youtube video I show you simple lifestyle changes that you can make to help overcome an autoimmune condition. 

4 Lifestyle Changes You Can Make

Fasting for gut repair.

At the root of every autoimmune condition are suppressed Regulatory T cells (Tregs). Tregs are key to maintaining normal immune response and avoiding overreaction. Since Tregs are produced in the small and large intestine we want to choose a fast that will help repair the gut and microbiome. For this I recommend the 5-1-1 Diet Variation. It entails 5 days a week of intermittent fast, 1 day a week of 24 hour fasting, and 1 day of feasting. Intermittent fasting (13-15 hrs) energizes your Tregs. With that, at 17 hours your body will be able to start detoxifying some of the environmental toxins out of your cells. The 24 hour fasts will reboot intestinal stem cells and repair the inner lining of the gut. If you are new to fasting, start with this 3 week guide to starting fasting.

Incorporate a Carnivore diet:

Certain diets will allow the Tregs to thrive, and one of those is the carnivore diet, which helps enhance and reenergize Treg cells. For this reason, I believe that this diet is the best for fighting autoimmune conditions. 

Build your microbiome.

Ion Biome is something I recommend not only for autoimmune conditions, but to all my clients looking to support their microbiome. Ion Biome works directly at your gut lining, helping fortify the mucosal lining and repairing the permeability of the lining that causes leaky gut. Since 70% of the immune system resides in our gut, this product is a must.

Avoid toxins.

Heavy metals like mercury and lead, mold, pesticides, glyphosate, parabens and phthalates are some of the biggest contributors to the overreaction of your immune system. While it is important to increase your awareness of where you are currently being exposed to toxins, the next step to health is removing the toxins that have accumulated inside your body over your lifetime. That being said, it is important to know that toxins can be passed down generationally. For this, you’ll want to detox.