Alzheimer's and How the Brain Works
Author: tiger Published Under: Health
Alzheimer's is the most common type of dementia, which refers to a group of disorders that affect the brain. This disease can have a major impact not only on the lives of those with the disease, but also their families and those that provide care.
Often, the first signs of Alzheimer's are not very obvious and are simply being forgetful and absentminded. However, ultimately, Alzheimer's can be an extremely frightening disease, which changes the way a person acts and thinks.
It is believed that around five million American's are currently living with Alzheimer's and of these, the majority are over the age of 65. The risk of Alzheimer's actually increases with age, but it is not a normal part of the aging process. Some studies suggest that this disease is compounded by increasing life expectancies.
So What Exactly is Alzheimer's?
Alzheimer's is a type of dementia in which certain parts of the brain begin to degrade. There is no way to reverse this degradation and ultimately can affect virtually all aspects of a person's mental capacity, including their ability to remember things about their past. It is also common for this to cause the person's attitude to change, often resulting in anger and confusion, in part because the person realizes there is something going on with their mind, but do not know what it is.
Alzheimer's, was named for Alois Alzheimer, who was a German Doctor. In 1906, Alzheimer was doing an autopsy on one of his patients, who had died after experiencing a steady decline in her mental faculties. During the autopsy, Alzheimer noticed a number of irregularities in the women's brain, which were very similar to those found in much older patients who had been diagnosed with senile-dementia.
Today, these lesions that Alzheimer observed are known as beta amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles.
How a Healthy Brain Functions
The brain is an amazing organ, which controls virtually all aspects of our life, from our conscious actions, like speech, to our unconscious actions, like breathing. The brain also accepts, process, and responds to the impulses sent by the nerves, which are located throughout our body and are attached to the brain by our spinal column.
The Brain is made up of several parts, with the cerebrum being the largest section of the brain.
The Cerebrum
The Cerebrum is made up of two parts and is the biggest section of the brain. The cerebrum is where most of our thinking occurs. The two parts of the Cerebrum are classified as the Right Hemisphere and the left hemisphere, with a thick layer of nerve cells connecting the two hemispheres.
It is believed that the left hemisphere is used to process detailed information and the right hemisphere is more for looking at the general situation.
Each of the brain's hemispheres are divided into four parts or lobes:
- Frontal Lobe The Frontal Lobe is physically located right behind the forehead. It is thought to be responsible for critical thinking and personality.
- Parietal Lobe The Parietal Lobe is right behind the frontal lobe and processes senses like smell and taste. It is also important for providing perspective as to where we are in space.
- Temporal Lobe The Temporal Lobe is located towards the side of the head and helps us to hear and understand language. It is also very closely tied to memory.
- Occipital Lobe The Occipital Lobe is responsible for our vision and is located towards the back of the hemisphere.
Other Systems of the Brain
The Limbic System is another important part of the brain and is associated with our emotions and motivations, as well as our instincts. This includes tasks like memorization, body temperature control, and hormone levels.
The Cerebellum is similar to the cerebrum in that it is made up of two hemispheres, but it is a good deal smaller. The cerebellum helps control balance and movements, as well as governing our semi-unconscious reactions to the environment.
The Brain Stem is sort of like a switchboard operator, connecting the spinal column to the brain and routing information sent from the nerves to the appropriate part of the brain. It also controls our unconscious actions, like breathing and heart beat.
The Thalamus is responsible for processing and analyzing our sensory information.
How Aging Affects the Brain
It is completely natural for aging to affect the brain and cause it to change, with the nerve cells shrinking over time. This makes it more difficult for information to be passed throughout the body and also slows down the speed at which information is processed. These changes can mean it is more difficult to remember something or perhaps actions that require a lot of dexterity are not as easy. However, these are natural parts of the aging process.
How Alzheimer's Affects the Brain
While some degradation of the brain is natural, in someone with Alzheimer's, the neurons loose their ability to communicate with other parts of the body and begin to die off, causing two main problems.
- Beta Amyloid Plaqes As the neurons begin to die, fragments of a protein called Beta Amyloid Plaques break off and begin to fragment in the brain, gradually grouping together forming clusters called oligomers. Eventually these form larger plaques, which greatly disrupt brain activity.
- Neurofibrillary Tangles Another effect of the dieing neurons is that a chemical called tau is released from the cells. Like the beta amyloid plaques, the tau begins to join together forming clusters called tangles, which cause the reduction of communicate skills and other mental problems.
What Causes Alzheimer's Disease?
In truth, the exact cause of Alzheimer's is not known, although a number of genetic similarities have been noticed in many patients, which is often seen when looking at a family tree. So, genetics are thought to be one of the biggest factors that causes Alzheimer's. However, age, injury, heart disease, strokes, education, and even gender have been found to be a factor in Alzheimer's Disease.