News release: “March is National Autoimmune Diseases Awareness Month, and the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association (AARDA) is working to educate the public on risk factors, prevalence, and the severe lack of awareness surrounding autoimmune diseases. During March, AARDA hopes to educate the public on the top five things everyone should know about autoimmune disease: (1) 50 Million Americans have an autoimmune disease, comprising a major U.S. health crisis. (2) There are 100+ autoimmune diseases including Crohn’s disease, celiac disease, rheumatoid arthritis (RA), vasculitis, and Addison’s disease. (3) Autoimmune diseases “cluster” in families; for example, if your grandmother had lupus, you could be at greater risk for developing an autoimmune disease. (4) Fewer than 13 percent of Americans can name an autoimmune disease. (5) Autoimmune diseases target women 75 percent more often than men; and combined, autoimmune diseases are one of the top ten killers of women under the age of 65.”