Menopause Mastery: Infections and Autoimmunity - A Double-Edged Sword

Today, Betty will continue to guide you through the root causes of autoimmunity. It turns out that if you have an autoimmune condition, a virus or parasitic infection might be the cause. In this episode, you'll hear the role of infections and parasites in autoimmunity. Then, you'll get tips and tools to make your immune system healthy. You might be surprised to discover that viruses, bacteria, and parasites aren't all bad. You'll learn that infections are actually the driving force that helps the immune system learn. There is an amount of exposure to bacteria, viruses, and parasites that our immune system needs to go through for it to intelligently figure out how and when to fight back. After listening, you'll look at infections in a whole new way. In fact, they could stop being so scary! Key Topics/Takeaways: The hygiene hypothesis. What you need to know about bacteria. Cross-reactivity. Biofilms. Why humans need exposure to viruses early on. Parasites. How to make your immune system healthy. Memorable Quotes: "Infections in some ways help our immune system learn." (3:57, Betty) "Our immune system is like a bunch of teenage boys without oversight." (5:09, Betty) "We need early exposure, particularly when we're young, probably with really robust immune systems, to a host of infections to help the body learn what is the difference between self and others." (22:50, Betty) "In some cases, parasites can be protective against autoimmunity." (25:35, Betty) "There is an amount of exposure to bacteria, viruses, and probably parasites that our immune system needs to go through for it to intelligently learn how to fight back and when to fight back and with what." (30:09, Betty) Website Living Well Dallas Hormone Reset Betty Murray Socials Facebook Instagram