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.
