TRENDING:

Government Announces Plans To Spray Seattle With ‘GMO B...
GMO Salmon just approved by the FDA
ABC: Experts say flu shot potentially caused the flu ep...
Health Nut News
Shop
  • Products
  • Health
    • Natural Health
    • Fitness
    • Beauty
    • Pets
    • News
  • Environment
  • Recipes
  • Politics
  • Newsletter
  • Contact
  • Shop

Select Page

Get Erin's Book Free

Sign up for Updates!

Are Mental Disorders the Result of Neuroinflammation?

Posted by Sayer Ji | Aug 11, 2016

Are Mental Disorders the Result of Neuroinflammation?
Posted on: Friday, August 24th 2012 at 5:00 am
Written By: Case Adams, Naturopath
This article is copyrighted by GreenMedInfo LLC, 2012

 

New research is increasingly finding that not only are many cognitive disorders such as Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia related to inflammation among brain tissues, but classic mental diseases such as schizophrenia and depression may also be connected to brain inflammation.

Recent research from Japan’s Kyushu University Medical School and Saga University have been revealing that many mental disorders are produced by inflammation involving the microglia cells of the brain.

What are microglia?

The microglia are immune cells categorized as macophages, but they are focused upon the health of the central nervous system – particularly the brain and spine. Microglia roam the neurons of these areas in search for toxins, intruders and possible infections.

Particularly at issue in cognitive issues such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease is the build up of amyloid plaque among brain cells. The microglia are the immune cells that prevent and clean up plaque build up among brain cells.

When the microglia populations are damaged or otherwise altered, the brain and CNS becomes increasingly susceptible to mental disorders such as dementia, schizophrenia, depression and mental fatigue.

Neuroinflammation and microglia

Neuroinflammation is the result of damage among brain cells. Healthy microglia populations are focused upon preventing inflammation among neurons, in turn preventing damage to brain cells.

However, when brain cells are damaged, microglia work harder to repair the damage by producing a variety of inflammatory factors. The damage to neurons, evidenced by these inflammatory factors, hamper the brain’s function.

Like other types of macrophages, the microglia are formed within the bone marrow. Once they migrate to the brain, they differentiate into particular responsibilities and different regions. Some microglia are focused on infections, others are focused upon toxins or damaged cells. Others stimulate the repair of brain tissues.

Plaque and neuroinflammation

The build-up of plaque among brain cells – connected to dementia – stimulates the microglia as they work to try to remove the damage. Damage from oxidative stress and glycation byproducts have been linked to this build up of plaque among brain cells.

Research by Dr. Akira Monji and associates has connected mental disorders such as schizophrenia, depressive states and cognitive issues to these increases in microglia inflammatory factors such as nitric oxide and cytokines. When the microglia have rapidly expanded in the face of damage to brain cells, they produce these inflammatory factors. Dr. Monji’s research has shown that the brain tissues of schizophrenia, depression and dementia patients have increased levels of these microglia inflammatory factors.

Furthermore, their research has found that one of the central mechanisms of psychiatric drugs is that they reduce levels of these inflammatory factors – temporarily.

Like most pharmaceuticals, this temporary reduction of inflammatory factors does little to prevent or reduce the cause of the inflammation. Furthermore, by blocking inflammatory factors, the drugs work to interfere with the damage repair that is taking place, driven by the microglia immune cells. This is often the scenario for drugs that are focused upon the symptoms rather than the causes of a condition.

What causes neuroinflammation?

The cause of neuroinflammation, as shown in numerous dementia studies, relates to oxidative damage. Oxidation is produced through an imbalance between toxins that form oxidative radicals and those antioxidants that neutralize those radicals. When the system is not balanced, oxidation takes place, not only among tissues among the cardiovascular system, but also among brain tissues.

This of course is why recent research, such as a new French and Finnish INSERM study, has linked cognitive decline to increased obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

The study, led by Dr. Mika Kivimaki and associates from the French government’s investigative body, INSERM, with support from the U.S. National Institutes of Medicine, studied 6,401 adults between 39 and 63 years old. They found that people who were obese and suffered from metabolic disorder (cardiovascular disease and/or diabetes) had more than a 22% greater cognitive decline than those who were of normal weight with no metabolic disorder.

This study has been confirmed by others that have related cognitive decline to cardiovascular disease, sedentary lifestyles, obesity and increased levels of toxins.

These issues have all been connected to higher levels of inflammation in the body.

The bridge to these relationships has been provided by the Japanese research, finding that neuroinflammation is one of the key factors affecting mental disorders of many types.

Antioxidants and mental disorders

Numerous studies have shown that antioxidants neutralize oxidative radicals that produce inflammation. The very term “antioxidant” is founded upon research showing that particular phyto-chemicals directly neutralize the oxidative effects of radicals formed by toxins.

This is supported by the research.

For example, in another large French study published this March in the Journal of Nutrition, researchers found that a healthy diet with greater antioxidant intake was associated with reduced risk of cognitive decline after the researchers removed factors relating to exercise, alcohol intake, calories, gender, age, education and obesity.

This is of course despite the fact that other research has found that smoking and lack of exercise both increase the rate of cognitive decline, as illustrated in a study by some of the same INSERM researchers that linked obesity and cognitive decline.

What this all means is that mental disorders are no longer conditions that necessarily fall within the abstract domain of behavioral psychology and psychiatry, where treatments such as lobotomy, electric shock and psychotropic drugs have produced a myriad of adverse mental and physical effects.

Rather, the research is conclusive: Many mental disorders are in fact produced by poor diets and poor lifestyles, and thus are to a great degree preventable.

This research also brings mental disorders within the realm of natural health and nutrition. What is now known is that a person with a healthy diet containing plenty of antioxidants, together with an active lifestyle, has a significantly reduced risk of having a mental disorder.

More importantly, a person with a healthier, antioxidant-rich diet will also stand a better chance of remaining alert into their elderly years.

Learn more about natural and gentle cleansing.

Related Research on GreenMedInfo

Brain: Micoglial Activiation

Brain Inflammation

REFERENCES

  • Monji A. The neuroinflammation hypothesis of psychiatric disorders. Seishin  Shinkeigaku Zasshi. 2012;114(2):124-33.
  • Sabia S, Elbaz A, Dugravot A, Head J, Shipley M, Hagger-Johnson G, Kivimaki M, Singh-Manoux A. Impact of Smoking on Cognitive Decline in Early Old Age: The Whitehall II Cohort Study. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2012 Feb 6.
  • Singh-Manoux A, Czernichow S, Elbaz A, Dugravot A, Sabia S, Hagger-Johnson G, Kaffashian S, Zins M, Brunner EJ, Nabi H, Kivimaki M. Obesity phenotypes in midlife and cognition in early old age: The Whitehall II cohort study. Neuro. 2012; 79 (8): 755.
  • Kesse-Guyot E, Andreeva VA, Jeandel C, Ferry M, Hercberg S, Galan P. A healthy dietary pattern at midlife is associated with subsequent cognitive performance. J Nutr. 2012 May;142(5):909-15.
  • McCrimmon RJ, Ryan CM, Frier BM. Diabetes and cognitive dysfunction. Lancet. 2012 Jun 16;379(9833):2291-9.
  • Chen SJ, Chao YL, Chen CY, Chang CM, Wu EC, Wu CS, Yeh HH, Chen CH, Tsai HJ. Prevalence of autoimmune diseases in in-patients with schizophrenia: nationwide population-based study. Br J Psychiatry. 2012 May;200(5):374-80.

Share:

PreviousDEA to reject marijuana’s medical use, will keep status Schedule I
NextFermented Foods Gaining Popularity as Health Benefits Become More Widely Recognized

About The Founder

Sayer Ji

Sayer Ji

    Related Posts

    Rhode Island urges Congress to repeal law protecting Big Pharma from vaccine injuries and deaths: Subpoena CDC whistleblower

    Rhode Island urges Congress to repeal law protecting Big Pharma from vaccine injuries and deaths: Subpoena CDC whistleblower

    April 10, 2018

    Baby who lost consciousness after circumcision dies

    Baby who lost consciousness after circumcision dies

    June 24, 2016

    He’s Having A Bad Day At Work. But When He Looks Out Of His Truck, He Spots THIS…

    He’s Having A Bad Day At Work. But When He Looks Out Of His Truck, He Spots THIS…

    June 6, 2016

    Vibration as Exercise? It Might be your New Favorite Workout

    Vibration as Exercise? It Might be your New Favorite Workout

    April 12, 2017

    Sign Up Now

    Get Erin’s Book For Free

    ©2016 healthnutnews.com | 226 N. Nova Road, Suite. 140, Ormond Beach, FL 32174 | (305) 912-2688 | All Rights Reserved.



    All content found on the HealthNutNews.com Website, including: text, images, audio, or other formats were created for informational purposes only. The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider/practitioner with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this Website.

    If you think you may have a medical emergency, call your doctor, go to the emergency department, or call 911 immediately. HealthNutNews.com and/or Erin Elizabeth do not recommend or endorse any specific tests, physicians, products, procedures, opinions, or other information that may be mentioned on HealthNutNews.com. Reliance on any information provided by HealthNutNews, Health Nut News employees, contracted writers, or medical professionals presenting content for publication to Health Nut News is solely at your own risk.

    Links to educational content not created by Health Nut News are taken at your own risk. Health Nut News/Erin Elizabeth is not responsible for the claims of external websites and education companies.



    Shares

    x close this window

    EMF Health Summit

    EMF Health Summit

    Find out how to stop EMF damage to your physical and mental health

    Get Access Here

    No Thanks

    x close this window

    Watch the FREE 7 Part Documentary Series

    Discover how to Prevent and Reverse Autoimmune disease.
    Don’t Miss out, Register Now!

    Get Access Here

    No Thanks