While reading about schizophrenia I noticed some information that I
believe is worth mentioned in this post. It is very interesting to know about
the demographic factors that are related to schizophrenia.
1% of people worldwide suffer from schizophrenia at some point in
life- if you get the total amount of people on this planet and then get the 1%
of that it is a lot of people that we are talking about. Of course here we are
talking about all cases from mild to severe.
Another point is that since mid-1900s schizophrenia has been declining
over the years in many countries. Now, we have to think about what could be the
possible explanation for this to occur. One possibility is that doctors could
have been diagnosing schizophrenia differently, or could be that there is
something that it is happening in our society that it’s contributing to this
without us knowing what it is.
The fact of the matter is that this condition occurs in all parts of
the world and in different ethnic groups, although it is more common in cities
than in rural areas. Also it is more common in the United States and Europe
than in Third World countries for reasons not well known.
On my last point I have to say that it got me thinking that if
researchers do not have a well-known reason we can then speculate what could be
the cause that schizophrenia is more common here in the United States and
Europe than in Third World countries. At least I believe that since much of the
symptoms of this condition are similar to those of the illegal drugs like LSD
or PCP, like hallucinations and delusions, and here in this country we have a
great deal of drug consumption, that it could have some relation to the last
fact that I just mentioned. In some Third World countries they have these same types
of conflicts but even then I still believe that drugs are a good reason why the
rate of schizophrenia is higher here than other parts of the world. Here is a graphic that I found on this webpage :http://www.schizophrenia.com/prevention/streetdrugs.html about the relation of consumption of cannabis and schizophrenia, my computer would not let me post it but you can go to the page and chek out the information there, it is very interesting. I found a good video that let us know about the symptoms of schizophrenia,
and since those resemble the ones of drug use, we then can get a good sense of
what people with these conditions have to go thru.
For some time I thought that my son had ADHD (attention deficit hyperactive disorder) because of the way he behave, he is always doing two things at once, hyperactive, and it is a little difficult for him to concentrate when doing homework, etc. After some reading about the subject my way of thinking about this condition change. There are so much information on the subject that I have no idea why I didn't look for it before, and there are many good videos that help, we just need to look at the right one to learn a little more, like the one on the link that I just post in this section. One important piece of information on that video is that even if you have some of the symptoms, that does not mean you have ADHD and only a doctor can give you an accurate diagnosis. Furthermore, it states that children who are diagnose with this condition are given a stimulant to help with the symptoms. Now, on this particular information I was confused at the beginning, but I think I understand better now. I thought that by giving them a stimulant the symptoms would worsen, when in fact the medication stimulates the brain so that children can have a more normal behavior. It is actually simple once you pay attention to the information. Some of the stimulants use are Ritalin, Adderall, Dexedrine, etc.
Now it is my opinion that children shouldn't be given any kind of medication unless it is really necessary because they are still developing their bodies and more important their brains. Can you imagine a doctor diagnosing a child lightly when probably he does not have this condition. We have to be very careful about this. I found another video that it gives you an alternative, here they are using meditation with ADHD children, and from what they said it worked on them. It is just a different approach to treat this condition. Just by watching these kids talk I can only imagine what they have to go thru at such young age. I will continue to work with my son even though his behavior is not that extreme, and I hope my post will help someone to understand better what ADHD means and how we can help someone with this condition.
The immune system consist of special cells that protect the body against bacterias, viruses, and other external agents like germs and other microorganisms. the immune system keeps people healthy by preventing infections. Through a process called the immune response, the immune system attacks organisms and susbstances that invade the body and cause disease. The immune system is composed of a network of cells, tissues, and organs that work together. The cells that are involved are called Leukocytes or white blood cells, and there are several types that combine to seek out and destroy the disease-causing organisms, including B cells, T cells, and Natural killer cells. The B cells secrete antibodies, these are proteins that attach to some kind of antigens. The T cells attack intruders directly and some of these cells help T or B cells to multiply. The natural killer cells attack tumor cells and cells that are infected with viruses. Natural killer cells attack all kinds of intruders. The immune system is an amazing mechanism that prorect your body, it is designed to defend us from millions of bacteria, viruses, toxins, etc that could invade our body. When someting dies the immune system shuts down, and in hours the body is invaded with all this bacterias and viruses. Nevertheless, this does not happen when the immune system is working, It is a little complicated to understand the immune system, but it is also very interesting to learn how our body works and how it defend it self. Another important point to talk about is how when we get sick, the symptoms are part of the body's way to fight the illness. We could think that the symtppoms are something that the illness did to us, when in reality it is just a strategy for fighting the illness. Sleep is a way for the body to conserve energy so that the body can devote more energy to its immune attack against the intruders, and moderate fever helps fight the illness. I found a very good video that helped me to understand the concept of the immune system and its functions. It is very interesting, I just wish to have wathched it before today :)
