Facts about lupus
- It’s a chronic illness: Symptoms may come and go, but the disease must be managed long-term. There is currently no known cure for Lupus.
- It’s an immune disease: ‘Auto’ means ‘self’ in Lupus, the immune system gets overactive and works incorrectly leading to your body attacking itself.
- It’s not a one size fits all disease: Lupus can look like many other diseases and have similar symptoms, yet the symptoms vary for different people, which makes it difficult to diagnose.
Factors that play a role with lupus
- Gender and Sex Hormones: Women get Lupus much more often than men as Estrogen levels may influence both the development and activity of Lupus.
- Genetics: Lupus has a tendency to appear in some families more than others.
- Environment: UV rays from the sun or fluorescent light bulbs, medications that make you sensitive to the sun, infections, colds and viral infections.
- Physical and Emotional Stress: Exhaustion and stresses to the body such as surgery, physical injury, pregnancy or giving birth.