What Is the Definition of An Autoimmune Disease
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease. This means that the powerful cells of your immune system that normally fight off infections as a foreign invaders turn around and actually attack parts of your body thinking they are foreign. In type 1 diabetes your body senses the beta cells of the pancreas as foreign and attacks them. The destruction of the beta cells cause your pancreas to not produce insulin and leads to the symptoms of diabetes.
Why an autoimmune disease causes your body to sense something as foreign is not very well understood. There are a number of possible factors that could contribute to the development of an autoimmune disease including:
• Genetic factors
• Environmental factors
• Infectious triggers
While type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease, type 2 diabetes and gestational diabetes are not an autoimmune disease.
