• Question: Do the hormones of the human body have an effect on auto-immune disease , and how do the hormones affect auto-immune

    Asked by Evan McPhail to Amy, Craig, Laura, Partha, Saffron on 17 Jun 2015.
    • Photo: Laura Wales

      Laura Wales answered on 17 Jun 2015:

      One example is type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disorder. The immune system usually ignores healthy cells but with this type of diabetes, the immune system destroy the beta-cell in the pancreas that produce insulin. This means that there is no insulin to control blood glucose levels.

    • Photo: Saffron Whitehead

      Saffron Whitehead answered on 18 Jun 2015:

      Another interesting example is Graves disease where the body produces antibodies that stimulate the thyroid gland to produce too much thyroid hormone – known as hyperthyroidism. This can cause intolerance to heat, palipitations, tremor and weight loss amongst other symptoms. Another example is autoimmune destruction of the thyroid gland which causes low levels of thyroid hormones known as hypothyroidism. Sometimes this disease is known as Hashimoto’s disease and patients suffer from weight gain, intolerance to cold, lethargy, fatigue and a low heart rate.

      We don’t know how hormones affect autoimmune disease but immune function can be suppressed during pregnany when some hormone levels are high.

      However, there is always a genetic predisposition regarding autoimmunity which means that if a parent or close relative has developed an autoimmune disease then offspring are more likely to develop one too. Envrionmental factors also play an important part

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