Free Radicals May Affect MG and Autoimmune Disease

Steven Lau

By Steven Lau

It is suspected that free radicals are the root cause of many diseases. While most studies look at free radicals in the context of the aging process, Steven Lau suspects that there may be a connection between free radicals and MG. Steven, who has MG himself, has researched and written extensively about MG. His book, 'My Myasthenia Gravis' is an account of his research as he developed his own Holistic Approach to finding relief from the symptoms of MG. The following article, discussing free radicals, is from a recent post to his MG disorder blog.

Cells make up your body's organs. As these cells die, your body's organs
begin to slowly fail as well.To maintain and sustain life, some of your cells replicate themselves continually, such as epithelial cells in your intestine, while others do not divide, such as your heart cells and neurons in your brain.

All human cells require energy and oxygen to function normally, and in this oxidation process free radicals are created. For example, when you breathe in life-giving oxygen, you also breathe out harmful carbon dioxide. This oxidation process is how your Creator has ingeniously built normal cell death into your body system to ensure your mortality. Slowly and cumulatively, these free radicals can build up in your cells in excess, ultimately leading to premature cell death.

The human body is composed of negatively and positively charged molecules, which must be balanced in order to enable these cells to function normally. When any imbalance occurs, a free radical is formed in these molecules. A free radical may damage other nearby molecules, causing them to produce more free radicals, and thus producing a free radical chain reaction.

Free radicals can also be caused by external factors: alcohol and tobacco; chemicals and pesticides from foods and pharmaceutical drugs; heavy metals, such as cadmium and lead, from the environment; radiation from the sun and other sources, such as cell phones. Some studies have found a connection to the exposure to these substances and myasthenia gravis. Most notably to pesticides.

Oxygen free radicals and other free radicals in the human body may cause damages to cells and neurons, such as the neurons in the brain, the cumulative damage to the DNA, resulting in human cancers, heart damage in the form of plague formation on the walls of heart arteries.

Most importantly, the presence of free radicals weakens and creates imbalances in the human immune system, which is essentially a network of cells and organs that communicate with one another in order to identify the invaders and attack them so as to protect the body from diseases and infections. When this complicated system is not balanced correctly it can become confused and malfunction. As it does in those of us with myasthenia gravis.

A malfunctioning immune system is the major cause of autoimmune diseases, which come in many different forms with many different symptoms; there are as many as over 100 autoimmune diseases. An autoimmune disease occurs when the immune cells "attack" the body's own organs and tissues, instead of protecting them from foreign invaders. As an illustration, in allergies, the body perceives something harmless, such as pollen, as potentially dangerous, and begins to produce large amounts of pollen antibody. In the next pollen encounter, the immune system "remembers" the first exposure, and consequently releases powerful chemicals causing sneezing, wheezing, and other allergic symptoms. In an autoimmune disease such as myasthenia gravis, this misguided 'attack' will repeat itself, and thus cause long-term damage.

Understanding the balance of the immune system and how to protect it from further damage is one part of the puzzle of controlling  myasthenia gravis. To control my disease I have taken an holistic approach in my attempt to conquer it. As a result of many years of research and much trial and error, today I am happy to report that I have successfully overcome many of the disease symptoms. Please allow me to share my story with you by visiting my website today: 'Cure' Myasthenia Gravis.

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