Auto-Immune conditions affect up to 10-20% of the U.S. population. Auto-Immune disorders are a result of the immune system attacking organs or tissues causing inflammation and various symptoms depending on where the attack is. If you have one auto-immune disorder, your risk for another auto-immune condition is increased. There are up to 100 known different auto-immune diseases. Some of the most common are type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, psoriasis and inflammatory bowel disease.
While there are many prescription medications available that may help control symptoms, none of them promote healing. Oral medications that can treat chronic inflammation are not without side effects. NSAIDs long term can have detrimental effects on the heart, kidneys, stomach, and brain long-term. Oral steroids can affect your ability to fight infections, increase blood sugar, affect skin integrity, and harm your organs. There are other medications that are available to target antibodies and suppress the immune system in autoimmunity, but these are often very expensive and can have negative side effects as well.
Potter’s House Apothecary has compounding options that can help! Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) is a novel treatment and that is continuing to be studied for more and more conditions. Cannabidiol (CBD) is another option that has helped a lot of patients suffering from autoimmunity. Let’s talk more about these treatment options.
Low dose naltrexone (LDN) is compounded into capsules, and many physicians and patients are starting to choose this as a first- or second-line treatment option. You may have heard of naltrexone as an opioid addiction treatment but, at low doses, naltrexone has been shown to decrease inflammation and increase the body’s natural pain-relieving substances. LDN is very well tolerated with the most common side-effects being vivid dreams, headache, and fatigue. These side effects are mild for most patients and many experience no side effects at all. LDN is not for everyone. If you are currently taking opioid prescription medications LDN is not recommended, as it could reduce the effectiveness of your opioids or cause withdrawal symptoms. It is also important to mention that the effects of LDN may not be seen for up to 3 months! We recommend tracking your symptoms to see if LDN is working for you. Ask your doctor or pharmacist if you could benefit from treatment with LDN.
Professional grade, full spectrum cannabidiol (CBD) oil is also proving to be beneficial as part of the treatment regimen for autoimmune conditions. CBD reduces pain & inflammation and modulates the immune system. CBD is well tolerated by most patients but may cause drowsiness. We recommend starting with nighttime dosing to see how it affects you. CBD can take up to a few weeks to see the full benefit, so stick with it, even if you don’t feel relief after the first few doses. We only recommend pharmaceutical grade CBD products where purity and potency are guaranteed to be consistent in every batch. Learn more about our line of full spectrum, professional grade CBD products.