Have you ever counted or noticed how many times you've smiled in a day, or better yet, on a day when you didn't have to work, worry about school, or stress over something going on in your life? If you're like me, then the answer is clearly no because we probably wouldn't have enough time, patience, or care to do so in the first place. One thing I do know, however, is that i'm constantly smiling and laughing whenever I see my friends and family, which I'm sure, is something you guys do as well. Having the ability to smile allows us to express the type of emotion we're feeling and is probably one of the easiest and quickest way to tell someone "hi" without actually saying it.
Imagine for a moment though, not being able to smile. Would the inability to perform this simple task make meeting new people and/or living life difficult in any way? I found myself asking this kind of question and pondering through the different possible answers shortly after learning about Moebius Syndrome, which is described as an extremely rare condition that affects the muscles that control facial expression and eye movements. The signs and symptoms for this syndrome are present at birth and not only does it prevent individuals from smiling, like I've mentioned before, but also from frowning and raising their eyebrows. Trouble with vision, speech, and the ability to eat food are other common difficulties, all of which, may be aided by various forms of therapy. There is no available cure for Moebius syndrome at the moment, but there is a lengthy operation known as "smile surgery" or functional muscle transfer that will ultimately allow for people [with Moebius] to smile. Something I found particularly interesting while investigating this condition is the fact that although these individuals may not be able to smile back at someone who has smiled at them, they are still able to feel the different types of emotion, just like you and I.
The inspiring video I've included is of a boy who was born with Moebius Syndrome. It not only shows his positive and "funny" outlook on life, despite the certain challenges he may encounter on a day-to-day basis, but also the many activities he is fully capable of doing.
This video just goes to show that we should never let our disabilities, weaknesses, or insecurities define who we are and what we can't accomplish.
When one thinks of pheromones, they typically associate it with bees or some kind of aroma that causes attraction. Several mammals and a vast majority of Insects emit different types of pheromones for a wide variety of functions. They can attract, alarm, lead (to a specific location), and pretty much cause members of the same species to behave in a certain way, so it's without a doubt that these strong chemicals are important within the different populations.
Would you be surprised if I told you that people (just like you and me) also secrete pheromones and (kind of) respond to them? The answer is...yes, we do! It's not to the same extent as dogs or bees but it still happens in an extremely weird way. Before I start talking about sweat and menstrual cycles though, a huge difference between humans and the organisms I previously mentioned, deals with the receptors of an organ known as VNO (vomeronasal organ). Apparently the VNO in humans is small and has no receptors while the complete opposite is true of insects and other mammals. Our olfactory mucosa instead, which is involved in smelling, contains receptors that resemble other species' pheromone receptors. Now that we've got that cleared, you're probably wondering what the smell of sweet sweat and menstrual cycles have to do with pheromones and our bodies' right? Well if you didn't already know, one of the best-documented effect of a human pheromone relates to the timing of women's menstrual cycles. Simply put, females who spend a large amount of time together end up having synchronized menstruation's, which reminds me of this funnyCLIPfrom the movie No Strings Attached. On the other hand, sweat, from both sexes, can affect the opposite sex in different ways. For instance, when a female near her ovulation begins to sweat, the smell causes the secretion of male testosterone to decline. Conversely, when a male begins to sweat, the smell makes the cortisol levels increase in females, thus triggering an undesirable response towards the opposite sex. I guess those guys working at Axe Body and Shower products know exactly what they're doing.
In a nutshell, even though the VNO and its receptors are vestigial, it seems as though pheromones are still working and causing changes in our behaviors whether we like it or not. I will leave you guys with this interesting LINK to a VIDEO/ARTICLE that talks about a dating event where individuals smell sweaty shirts of the opposite sex in hopes of finding the perfect match. Am I the only one who finds this strange?!
Our brain is constantly working around the clock, allowing us to store both long term and also short term memories. It's quite fascinating how it's able to do so if you ask me. Being able to recall a memory from my first trip to Washington when I was eight years old to quickly memorizing a couple of key notes for my quiz tomorrow (which will more than likely slip my mind after the class has finished) has always been an interesting observation. It's not surprising to discover that other people find this topic intriguing as well. What I want to focus on, however, is not the process by which we store memories, but the process by which we lose our memories. Or at least, what happens when we lose the ability to form and recall them.
The symptom/condition I just described is known as Alzheimer's disease. If you don't already know about it, let me just take a quick moment to fill you in on a couple of important details. Alzheimer's is a type of dementia that affects more than five million people worldwide. Chances of getting this dreadful disease typically increases with age, although people younger than 40 have occasionally been known to suffer from it. In addition to affecting primarily older individuals, it has also been reported that 1 in 3 senior citizens will die from Alzheimer's, and as of recently, researchers have found that women are the main candidates for developing the disease. I've decided to include two short video's, the first of which is below and explains what is actually occurring in the brain (physiology) of someone who has Alzheimer's since I feel everybody should have a basic understanding of this massive epidemic, while the second is a link to the VIDEO that was recently published and is based solely on statistics and facts.
Call me crazy, but after gathering all of that information, getting old does not look too good for anyone at the moment. I don't know anyone who suffers from this kind of condition, luckily, but I would imagine it must be extremely sad and scary for anyone who has a family member or friend living with it. I've read articles and have seen many videos,like this one, regarding this topic and can not imagine how it would feel to have a parent or grandparent who can't remember who they're speaking with. I wish I could write that there's a cure out there for this disease, but unfortunately there's none. There are, however, certain drugs that help with cognitive and behavioral symptoms and a handful of preventative measures (recommended by doctors) that may keep you in the clear from developing the disease. At the end of the day, I have nothing but big hopes and wish this post can serve of some importance.
I've never really been aware of what exactly epilepsy was until recently. I don't know anyone who has it and the only times I've seen someone suffer from an episode, is from watching House or a movie of some sort. So, if you're clueless like me, get ready to have a full serving of information presented to you, by yours truly.
For starters, epilepsy is a is a condition that is characterized by repeated episodes of excessive synchronized neural activity (essentially two or more seizures). These seizures can be brought about through a wide variety of factors including brain injury, abnormal development, brain illnesses, and surprisingly even reasons that are unknown. Seizures are generally caused by excessive electrical activity in the brain which thus interrupts the way it normally sends messages. Symptoms vary depending on the person and the severity of the episode, and can include convulsions, shaking, difficulty breathing, tongue biting, and so much more (you could check out the complete list for yourself by clicking here). This definitely seems like a lot of information, so if you're having some difficulty grasping what this condition is and how it occurs, then I highly recommend hearing what the doctor has to say in the video below. It's really informative and he explains everything perfectly, so go ahead and click play.
Luckily for us though, epilepsy is treatable with prescription drugs as the main source and surgery as an alternative. I guess the only trouble would be going to the doctors office and actually getting diagnosed. While trying to find out more information regarding the types of treatment available for this condition, I came across thisvideo, which talks about a less-invasive surgery called the laser ablation technique. This procedure, however, is only available to patients, like Keagan, in which the "brain abnormality or lesion" is localized within a specific region of the brain. If I, or if my future kids, were in the same situation as him, I would be really worried and maybe terrified with the drilling aspect. Ultimately though, I think undergoing that procedure would be a good decision.
Being in my early twenties it seems like everyone around me, either slightly older, younger, or my age, is deciding to have a baby. I'm definitely not ready for that kind of responsibility right now, but somewhere along the line I would love to see a little miniature version of myself running around. With that said, I think learning bits of information pertaining to babies would be beneficial for everyone reading this. Even if you don't plan on having any children, I still think it's something worth learning about.
So what does a baby have to do with water on the brain, you might ask?
Water on the brain, or more commonly known as hydrocephalus, is a condition that occurs when cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) becomes obstructed and accumulates within the ventricles, or subarachnoid space. This in turn increases the pressure on the brain and causes the infants skull bones to separate, leading to what appears as an overgrown head. The outcome of this condition is typically associated with mental retardation and may affect many other aspects of the body.
Now that you know how having a baby and water on the brain correlate to each other and you know what hydrocephalus is, you might also be asking yourself how and why does CSF accumulate in an infant's head?
The video below shows a family and the struggles they faced, when they found out their newborn, Emma, was diagnosed with hydrocephalus. It also has the answer to that question (at approximately 4:20) but before you skip ahead, I recommend watching the entire video.
Aside from telling the story of Emma, the doctor in the video also mentions the treatment and history, which was extremely interesting to learn. I had heard of hydrocephalus a couple of times in some other classes, but I never knew how and if it was even possible to treat such a condition. According to Dr.Moss, a tube must be connected to both the head and abdomen in order to drain the fluid, and that prior to this treatment, babies who were diagnosed with this condition in the early 1900's were going to pass away with no chances of survival, which is really sad and unfortunate. Thankfully though, research and technology now enables others, like Emma, to live almost nearly normal lifestyles.
I just turned 21 two months ago, and aside from the expected "happy birthday," a little more than half of the responses I also got pertained to drinking, buying alcohol, and getting drunk. And although those type of comments don't bother me, hearing stories about car crashes and blacking out does. I used to be surrounded by people who would drink every weekend, for no apparent reason, wake up with hangovers, and be in some sort of dilemma (stolen or misplaced wallets/keys/cell phones, dented cars, etc). The majority of the time it was minor things like that, thankfully, but the remaining situations were both sad and troubling. There were even some instances in which people who were not drinking ended up being affected or getting injured because of somebody who consumed alcohol.
So what is it about alcohol that everyone finds so appealing? Is it the impaired coordination or slurred speech? Probably not. The answer most people would agree with is that it decreases anxiety and serves as a source for relaxation, which is perfectly fine if the person drinks responsibly and to a moderate amount. However, when someone consumes and excessive amount of alcohol, an additional answer some people might overlook actually deals with genetics.Individuals, if possible, may be categorized as having Type I (Type A) or Type II (Type B) alcoholism. Type I usually occurs after the age of 25 with the probability of having relatives who abuse alcohol as a contributing factor, while type II usually occurs at a faster rate and before the age of 25.
How exactly does alcohol make someone more relaxed though? The answer to that should be more clear after watching this video, which explains how the glutamate receptors (the brain's main excitatory sites) become blocked while the GABA receptors (main inhibitory sites) are activated.
This "feel less, perceive less, notice less, and remember less" attitude mentioned in the video above perfectly describes the affect alcohol has on the brain, at least in my opinion. In the end, drinking alcohol (maybe to unwind or because our genes and surroundings are telling us to) is ultimately our decision, but when you compare the pros and cons and see the short and long terms affects, it might be a wise decision to say no, and allow our little glutamate receptors to be free from obstruction.
When I think of the immune system, I tend to think of little cells wearing body armor while holding some sort of weapon and fighting crime, kind of like in the picture below.
For the most part, we can attribute our health to the immune system for protecting us from viruses, bacteria, and infectious diseases (like the flu and malaria), so if you're looking for something to be thankful for this coming Thanksgiving, well there you go. Unfortunately, not every immune system is the same. Autoimmunity, which is defined as a condition in which the body produces an immune response against its own constituents, affects a wide array of individuals all over the world. The list of disorders is somewhat lengthy, but there is one in particular that recently caught my attention, and it goes by multiple sclerosis (MS). If you're not familiar with this disorder, it essentially, is an attack of the immune system on myelin sheaths which functions to allow action potentials to quickly propagate from one neuron to another, and is an extremely important part of the central nervous system (both brain and spinal cord). This disease, if you haven't already figured out, interferes with muscle coordination, vision, and even breathing. The video bellow probably paints a much better picture of MS though.
As the video mentioned, it appears there are no apparent cause and cure for multiple sclerosis. There are a few treatments that help with pain/discomfort, but it does not work for everyone. This whole topic really got me thinking, and maybe freaking out, but what would happen and how would I be able to live with this extremely harsh condition? How would you? Aside from right now, I hardly ever pay any attention to my movements, I'm pretty sure none of us do, but imagine not being able to go out to the store to pick up a few groceries or watch one of your favorite movies because of blurred vision. Pretty scary right? I decided to look for recently published articles and videos to see if there was any progress in the search for better treatments. Surprisingly, this VIDEO which aired just two weeks ago gave a lot more insight than I expected. Megan Quinn, a female who developed MS at 27, will be the first to undergo a new and exciting treatment. According to Dr. Jon LaPook, stems cells taken from Megan will be morphed into stems cells that are found in the CNS, and then placed back into her body. The ultimate goal of this treatment is to re-form any missing or damaged myelin sheaths. This seems to be an outstanding new form of treatment, and a step in a good direction (I really hope everything turns out good for Megan), but I guess only time will tell if this innovative option is safe enough to undergo a widespread use.
