When Toronto writer Kathy Shaidle found out she had lupus, she decided to look on the bright side. "Hey! I’ll be able to write a book about this one day," she told herself.Dubbed "the disease of a thousand faces," lupus touches every person differently. For some, its effects can be relatively mild: sore joints, fatigue and rashes. In others, it can damage vital organs, lead to neurological disorders ranging from memory loss to hallucinations, and leave sufferers in constant pain.

An autoimmune disease, lupus occurs when antibodies produced by the immune system attack the body’s own tissue. No one has yet pinpointed the exact cause of the disease or how it short-circuits the immune system. A current theory suggests that improper processing of dying cells triggers the malfunction. Since lupus affects nine times as many women as men and often strikes during or after a pregnancy, many researchers believe it may be linked to hormone imbalances such as excessive levels of estrogen or low levels of androgen. The usual suspects–diet, infections and stress–have also been named as possible factors in its onset. An unusual suspect is leaky gut syndrome, which is believed to be an underlying factor in a wide variety of autoimmune diseases, including lupus, multiple sclerosis and arthritis. Certain medications, including oral contraceptives, high blood pressure medications and sulfa drugs (antibiotics), can also be triggers.

Lupus generally strikes women between the ages of 14 and 40. Those of African, Asian and aboriginal descent are at especially high risk. Some may also have a genetic predisposition to the disease. Happily, improved treatments have demoted the disease from a once-fatal illness to a debilitating but generally manageable one. According to psychologist Robert Phillips in his book, Coping With Lupus (Avery, 2001), 80 to 90 percent of people with lupus can expect to live out a normal lifespan.

Living Life to its Fullest

Shaidle had just turned 27 when the disease’s trademark symptom, the "butterfly rash," appeared across her nose and cheeks. At first, she recalls, "I thought of the diagnosis as an exciting adventure, a character-building challenge." That grew harder as she dropped to 85 pounds, became bedridden with arthritis and found herself literally unable to shrug off the pain, because shrugging hurt too much. Spells of severe illness–known as "flares"–came and went with seemingly little provocation, making it tough to plan ahead or snatch enjoyment out of everyday life.

Since lupus affects people in different ways, each course of treatment must be tailored to the individual. Standard medical therapies include a regimen of blood-thinning drugs (anticoagulants) to prevent blood clots and steroid medications to help reduce tissue inflammation. If you’re taking these drugs, it’s worthwhile to consult a naturopath or wholistic physician for natural alternatives free of side-effects. Proteolytic enzyme therapy, which involves a temporary worsening of inflammation to reduce tissue swelling, has also been used as a treatment.

Fitness and Nutrition

Sabitri Ghosh is a researcher and award-winning freelance writer whose work appears in publications such as The Globe and Mail and World Vision’s Childview Magazine.
Dr. Rona is a practising physician in Toronto with a master’s degree in biochemistry and clinical nutrition. He has written several Canadian best-sellers including Return to the Joy of Health (1995) and Childhood Illness and the Allergy Connection (1997). Visit his Web site at drzoltanrona.com.

Source: alive #244, February 2003