Suara.com – Often taken lightly, allergy symptoms can significantly hinder daily activities. Even so, there are still many who do not know the basic differences between allergies and immunological or autoimmune disorders.
Internal Medicine Specialist from Eka Hospital Cibubur, dr. Yovita Mulyakusuma, highlighted that allergies and immunological disorders are now increasingly common health problems in modern society. Although both are closely related to the body's defense system, the causes and approaches tend to differ substantially.
Illustration of skin showing an allergic reaction. (Freepik)
Allergies, basically, are the body's excessive response to a foreign substance that is actually harmless. These substances, known as allergens, can come from various sources such as pollen, animal dander, certain types of food, medications, or even chemicals. By understanding the essence of this difference, we can be wiser in recognizing and treating these two health problems which are similar but different in essence.
“When someone who is allergic experiences exposure to certain allergens, their immune system will overreact, and symptoms such as runny nose, sneezing, shortness of breath, skin rashes, and even life-threatening anaphylactic reactions arise,” said Dr. Yovita through information received by Suara.com, Thursday (22/2/2024).
Meanwhile, immunology is the function of the immune system to protect us from infection through various lines of defense. So immunological disorders involve dysfunction in the immune system.
“A condition where the body's immune system excessively and mistakenly recognizes the body's own healthy cells as za tasing, so that it attacks the body's own cells, is called autoimmune. Examples are Lupus, Rheumatoid arthritis, Sjorgen's Syndrome, Psoriasis, and many more,” explained the doctor who also the immunology allergy consultant.
Autoimmune disease. (Shutterstock)
On the other hand, there are immunodeficiency conditions, where the immune system is weak or dysfunctional, making individuals more susceptible to infection. Examples include HIV/AIDS, cancer, congenital immunodeficiency, and others.
Causes and risk factors of autoimmune vs allergy
The causes of allergies and immunological disorders are varied and often complex. Genetic, environmental and lifestyle factors play an important role in the development of both.
“A person who has a family history of allergies or autoimmune disease has a higher risk of experiencing allergies or autoimmune disease. However, various things such as gender, stress, exposure to chemicals, exposure to allergens, diet, infections, etc., play a role in the occurrence of allergic conditions. and autoimmune,” explained Dr. Yovita.
Meanwhile, immunodeficiency conditions are influenced by genetic factors, gene mutations, viral infections, malignancy, use of immunosuppressant drugs, chemotherapy, and so on.
Autoimmune vs allergy symptoms
Allergy symptoms can include itching, watery eyes, stuffy nose, coughing, shortness of breath, skin disorders, and even anaphylaxis. Autoimmune symptoms vary depending on the type of autoimmune disease and how severe the condition is.
Some symptoms that are generally found in autoimmune conditions include feeling tired, frequent fevers, joint pain, hair loss, rashes on the skin.
“Meanwhile, in immunodeficiency conditions, the symptoms include repeated infections, increased risk of serious infections, and slow healing from minor illnesses,” concluded Dr. Yovita.