In stressful situations, the body will start to release adrenaline and norepinephrine to prepare you for the situation that might ensue. These molecules get released within seconds. It initiates the body’s fight or flight response. Then, after a couple of minutes, your body would be flooded with the stress hormone called cortisol. Cortisol is supposed(…)
Although some say that helmets are not protective enough, they are shown to reduce the risk of severe traumatic brain injury by half, according to a U.S. study. People who wear helmets also have a 44 percent lower risk of death and 31 percent lower odds of facial fractures, researchers reported in the American Journal(…)
According to the FDA, ninety percent of people in the world use caffeine. In the United States, eighty percent of adults consume the drug every day. Forms of the world’s most popular drug range from energy drinks to caffeinated gum. On average an adult has 200 mg per day, the same amount that’s in two five-ounce(…)
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) uses a large magnet and radio waves to noninvasively examine organs, soft tissues, bone, and virtually all other internal body structures. It has been used since the 1970s to diagnose and treat medical conditions such as brain tumors, internal bleeding, and torn ligaments. Although much has been invested in magnetic coils(…)
New research is exploring why some brain injury cases recover and others do not, which appears to be linked to what are called brain tsunamis. These brain tsunamis are seizure-like waves that spread through the brain after a traumatic brain injury. More formally, they are known as “cortical spreading depolarizations.” The long-term goal of the(…)
A woman from Michigan fell and suffered a traumatic brain injury on a popular but dangerous summer toy: a Slip ‘N Slide, according to Yahoo News. After she fell, she started vomiting and seizing. She suffered a traumatic subdural hemorrhage. This kind of injury happens when blood collects between the outer layer of the covering(…)
While my grandmother used to do crossword puzzles and play Sudoku to stay sharp in old age, older people today are being exposed to more high-tech solutions to staying sharp, specifically, brain-training games. The creator of the brain-training app, Lumosity, touted research that stated people who played the app had greater improvements in cognitive functioning(…)
We wrote a blog earlier this month about how the sugar industry paid off scientists to downplay the connection between sugar and heart disease. We talked to Curt Ellis, the filmmaker of the documentary King Corn, which is about the subsidized crop that fuels our fast-food nation. In a McDonald’s meal, everything on the plate(…)
The dawn of winter is approaching. As you may get excited for cooler air and other activities, you might also want to consider getting your furnace checked for good reason: to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning. Thirty-four people were killed in Michigan due to carbon monoxide poisoning in 2013, according to the Michigan Department of Health(…)
A team of researchers at Stanford University in collaboration with the University of Oxford is making a surgical procedure called craniectomy after brain swelling much safer. A cortical contusion, or a brain bruise, increases the amount of fluid within the skull, causing brain swelling, and increasing intracranial pressure (ICP). The goal of neurosurgery after a(…)