• Experts finger cell phones, telecom masts, narcotics, anxiety as triggers

By Azoma Chikwe

The world is getting old, spiritually speaking, and diseases are multiplying. Partcularly, the cancer rate is going very high because of western lifestyle which include eating all kinds of junk foods. That sort of lifestyle has exposed us to all sorts of diseases. And so brain diseases are increasing.

What are the brain diseases? They include schizophrenia, Huttington disease, psycho disorders – all the people who take hard drugs and controlled substances destroy their brains. Other brain diseases are stroke, Alzeimer’s disease, Parkinson’s syndrome, bipolar disorder, multiple schlerosis, dementia etc.

Consutant Neurosurgeon and Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Babcock University, Illishan, Ogun State, Prof Iheanyichukwu Okoro says another reason for increase in brain diseases is because the ozone layer of the atmosphere is being depleted, and as the sun is coming in, a lot of mutation is going on, “ so, brain problem is also increasing. And also, the kind of life we live, the kind of food we eat, food that are not nutritious but have high fat content, the fat block the blood vessels in the brain. Once the blood vessels are blocked, we have strokes. So, we have high incidence of strokes now.

“There are also environmental issues. What are the environmental issues? Stress – mothers are subjected to stress, poor nutrition because of recession, all of these affect the brain of the growing child and young children. Once a child is malnourished, the brain will not develop well. All these cause high incidence of brain problems.”

Warning against abuse of Global System of Mobile telecommunications (GSM) and telecom masts, Prof Okoro who is also the Provost, College of Health and Medical Sciences, Babcock University said, “it is not just telecom masts, also the GSM phones we are using. That’s why we advise people they should be careful how they use these things. Though the radiation from them are small, it is called handheld device, so just keep it in your hand . Don’t take it to sensitive areas like the brain and the heart. These two areas are sensitive. And for the gonads, for men and women, we have the gonads like the testes, the ovary  and so on. As you keep exposing them to these materials, over time, you see some mutation taking place. As we talk about brain activity , brain has a lot of electricity, everything happening there is electric current. When you have these GSM things around, they tend to affect the brain activity, the electrical activity of the brain. Like I said, these are small things, but over time, if you don’t exercise caution, you will have brain problems.

“These things are good, but the way we use them, some people are so addicted to these phones, that if you tell them to put off their phones for five minutes, it seem as if they are dying. I get amazed when I see people in the aircraft, they say please put off your phones it will affect signals, some passengers will not, I had to quarrel with some of them, I said you want to hold your phone and crash. Is that better for you? Why can’t you put off your phone for the next one hour, after that you can put it on again. So, we are getting addicted to these things, that they are beginning to affect our health. We want to warn them, know how you use your phones don’t get them too close to your head even when you are answering calls. You have to be very careful.”

On detoxifying the body, he said, “there are food items that contain what we call antioxidants, these food items produce substances that help us to detoxify our bodies, infact, they also help us to remove free radicals from our systems. Foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, oranges, cashews, they have a high level of antioxidants that can help us. Somebody talked about taking plenty of water, that may not really help so much, but particularly food items. We are also encouraged to take multivitamins, omega 3 and so on, those ones also help to detoxify our bodies.”

Prof. Polycarp Nwoha, professor of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile –Ife, said, “brain diseases are on the increase today because of the high rate of stroke, because stroke is a prominent brain disease that is manifesting everywhere. There are other ones too, schizophrenia is becoming common, we don’t see much of Alzeimer’s because of lack of longevity, most times it manifests during old age, we don’t see much of it , not that we don’t have it. How many people live beyond 70 and 80, Huttington disease, we don’t see much of it, not that we don’t have it. The one that is very key is stroke.

“There are these environmental neurotoxicants, like telecom masts which we don’t realize that it has a lot of mutation effects. We have these dustbins that we find everywhere, polluting everywhere, they release a lot of toxins and these have cancer producing effects. People should be aware of that and try to clean our environment because of ourselves. Pipe borne water,  a lot of them have lead, that is not good,” he said.

Stroke

Stroke occurs when the supply of blood to the brain is either interrupted or reduced. When this happens, the brain does not get enough oxygen or nutrients which causes brain cells to die. Strokes occur due to problems with the blood supply to the brain; either the blood supply is blocked or a blood vessel within the brain ruptures.

There are three main kinds of stroke; ischemic, hemorrhagic and Transient ischemic attack(TIA) . Stroke is also more likely to affect people if they are overweight, aged 55 or older, have a personal or family history of stroke, do not exercise much, drink heavily, smoke or use illicit drugs.

Ischemic stroke

Ischemic stroke is the most common form of stroke, accounting for around 85% of strokes. This type of stroke is caused by blockages or narrowing of the arteries that provide blood to the brain, resulting in ischemia – severely reduced blood flow.

These blockages are often caused by blood clots, which can form either in the arteries connecting to the brain, or in other blood vessels before being swept through the bloodstream and into narrower arteries within the brain. Clots can be caused by fatty deposits within the arteries called plaque.

Hemorrhagic stroke

Hemorrhagic stroke are caused by arteries in the brain either leaking blood or bursting open. The leaked blood puts pressure on brain cells and damages them. Blood vessels can burst or spill blood in the middle of the brain or near the surface of the brain, sending blood into the space between the brain and the skull.

The ruptures can be caused by conditions such as hypertension, trauma, blood-thinning medications and aneurysms (weaknesses in blood vessel walls).

Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a serious disorder which affects how a person thinks, feels and acts. Someone with schizophrenia may have difficulty distinguishing between what is real and what is imaginary; may be unresponsive or withdrawn; and may have difficulty expressing normal emotions in social situations.

Contrary to public perception, schizophrenia is not split personality or multiple personality. The vast majority of people with schizophrenia are not violent and do not pose a danger to others. Schizophrenia is not caused by childhood experiences, poor parenting or lack of willpower, nor are the symptoms identical for each person.

The cause of schizophrenia is still unclear. Some theories about the cause of this disease include: genetics (heredity), biology (abnormalities in the brain’s chemistry or structure); and/or possible viral infections and immune disorders.

Genetics (Heredity)

Scientists recognize that the disorder tends to run in families and that a person inherits a tendency to develop the disease. Similar to some other genetically-related illnesses, schizophrenia may appear when the body undergoes hormonal and physical changes (like those that occur during puberty in the teen and young adult years) or after dealing with highly stressful situations.

Positive symptoms are disturbances that are “added” to the person’s personality. Delusions –false ideas–individuals may believe that someone is spying on him or her, or that they are someone famous (or a religious figure). Hallucinations –seeing, feeling, tasting, hearing or smelling something that doesn’t really exist. The most common experience is hearing imaginary voices that give commands or comments to the individual.

Disordered thinking and speech –moving from one topic to another, in a nonsensical fashion. Individuals may also make up their own words or sounds, rhyme in a way that doesn’t make sense, or repeat words and ideas. Disorganised behavior –this can range from having problems with routine behaviors like hygiene or chosing appropriate clothing for the weather, to unprovoked outbursts, to impulsive and uninhibited actions. A person may also have movements that seem anxious, agitated, tense or constant without any apparent reason. 

Negative symptoms are capabilities that are “lost” from the person’s personality, social withdrawal, extreme apathy (lack of interest or enthusiasm), lack of drive or initiative, emotional flatness

Recovery and rehabilitation

While no cure for schizophrenia exists, many people with this illness can lead productive and fulfilling lives with the proper treatment. Recovery is possible through a variety of services, including medication and rehabilitation programs. Rehabilitation can help a person recover the confidence and skills needed to live a productive and independent life in the community.

Parkinson’s disease

Parkinson’s disease affects the nerve cells in the brain that produce dopamine. Parkinson’s disease symptoms include muscle rigidity, tremors, and changes in speech and gait. After diagnosis, treatments can help relieve symptoms, but there is no cure.

Symptoms of Parkinson’s disease differ from person to person. They also change as the disease progresses. Symptoms that one person gets in the early stages of the disease, another person may not get until later or not at all. Symptoms typically begin appearing between the ages of 50 and 60. They develop slowly and often go unnoticed by family, friends, and even the person who has them.

Parkinson’s disease strikes people in many different ways, leaving them to experience a broad range of symptoms. Though symptoms may be mild or severe or occur frequently or infrequently, Parkinson’s disease appears to have five different stages. The time spent at each stage varies, and the skipping of stages, from stage one to stage three, for example, is not uncommon.

Alzheimer’s disease

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a slowly progressive disease of the brain that is characterized by impairment of memory and eventually by disturbances in reasoning, planning, language, and perception. Many scientists believe that Alzheimer’s disease results from an increase in the production or accumulation of a specific protein (beta-amyloid protein) in the brain that leads to nerve cell death.

The likelihood of having Alzheimer’s disease increases substantially after the age of 70 and may affect around 50 per cent of persons over the age of 85. Nonetheless, Alzheimer’s disease is not a normal part of aging and is not something that inevitably happens in later life. For example, many people live to over 100 years of age and never develop Alzheimer’s disease.

Age

The main risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease is increased age. As a population ages, the frequency of Alzheimer’s disease continues to increase. Ten percent of people over 65 years of age and 50 per cent of those over 85 years of age have Alzheimer’s disease.

Genetics

There are also genetic risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease. Most people develop Alzheimer’s disease after age 70. However, less than 5% of people develop the disease in the fourth or fifth decade of life (40s or 50s). At least half of these early onset patients have inherited gene mutations associated with their Alzheimer’s disease. Moreover, the children of a patient with early onset Alzheimer’s disease who has one of these gene mutations has a 50% risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.