Autoimmune disease

Autoimmune disease is when the body's immune system attacks its own body. The function of the immune system is to recognise and reject foreign bodies like bacteria. Sometimes the system goes wrong, and the body itself gets damaged by its immune system. Examples are:

• Crohn's disease
• Graves' disease
• Type 1 diabetes
• Multiple sclerosis
• Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (also called juvenile idiopathic arthritis)
• Coeliac disease
• Myasthenia gravis