Autoimmune disorders cause the body’s defense mechanism, the immune system, to turn on itself which renders it useless to fight external infections and health attacks. Lupus is one of the autoimmune diseases, which is not contagious but can be chronic causing discomfort for literally a lifetime.

Lupus attacks the immune system which is essential for producing healthy tissue and cells needed for the body to recover or protect itself from imminent infections and bacteria. One of the major risk factors for lupus is its ability to force the immune system to target healthy cells and tissue, thus destroying it in the process.

Commonly associated symptoms of lupus include chronic pain, inflammation, extreme fatigue, fever, and anemia among many others. Although the condition is chronic, people will suffer from mild or severe episodes of lupus.

Causes of lupus range from exposure to ultraviolet light, smoking, and hormone fluctuations which result in an imbalance caused due to pregnancy or birth control pills. Certain types of medications for blood pressure control, antibiotics, and even for battling seizure can lead to the development of lupus.

Here are some of the associated risk factors for lupus explained:
Family history: Genetics plays a very important role in lupus being transmitted from one person to another, which is why your family history plays one of the key risk factors for lupus. Being related to someone who has the condition, increases the chances of you getting lupus. Also, according to the Lupus Foundation of America, children who are born to a mother who has lupus also have a higher risk of developing the disorder.

Gender: One of the risk factors for lupus includes gender, with over 90% of the cases diagnosed with lupus being women. More than men, women are severely affected by the autoimmune disorder. The risk is increased when a woman becomes of childbearing age.

Race: It may not be politically correct to identify on the basis of race; however, when it comes to medical science, where you belong or come from can make all the difference in diagnosing a particular condition or symptom for that matter. Lupus disorder is more common in Africans Americans, Hispanics, Latinos, Asians, Native Americans, and Caucasians; they are all at a greater risk of developing the symptoms of lupus.

Age: Age plays a key role when it comes to risk factors for lupus, since most people who are affected by the condition are between the ages of 15–44 when the symptoms are more persistent and the condition is dominant.

Infections: People who are already affected with certain infections like cytomegalovirus, parvovirus, hepatitis C are at increased risk of developing the condition.

Risk factors for lupus will be directly associated with the type of lupus a person might be suffering from, which can be categorized into the following:

• Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)
• Discoid lupus erythematosus (DLE)
• Subacute cutaneous lupus erythematosus
• Drug-induced lupus
• Neonatal lupus

This autoimmune disorder is not contagious and cannot be transmitted sexually, which is why the risk factors associated with lupus are mainly dependent on the type mode of transmission.