Page 21 - Florida Sentinel 1-10-20

Health
ALCOHOL USE DISORDER
It’s no secret that alcohol af- fects the brain. It can cause blurry vision, slurred speech, and mem- ory loss. That’s because alcohol kills brain cells. Over time, drink- ing too much can damage your brain. Research shows that it can shrink certain parts of your brain, too. Some experts say that people with alcoholism have a smaller hippocampus -- the area impor- tant for learning and memory -- than those who don’t drink often.
ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE
Your brain has cells called neu- rons. They “talk” to each other through chemical and electrical sig- nals, and send messages to the rest of your body. Alzheimer’s disease disrupts this communication. It’s thought that the breakdown comes from a buildup of two proteins, amyloid and tau. Both create tan- gles that might disrupt messages.
BRAIN ANEURYSM
A brain aneurysm is weak spot in a blood vessel. It usually balloons or bulges out and fills with blood. Many look like a berry hanging on a thin stem. They often form on arteries at the base of the brain. Some aneurysms leak or rupture. That causes bleeding in the brain or the area between your brain and its lin- ing. These are hemorrhagic strokes. They can start as headaches but can lead to nausea, seizures, and death.
SCHIZOPHRENIA
People with schizophre-
nia have different brains than
those without this mental dis-
order. Scans show they lose
gray and white matter, the
fatty material that makes up
the brain. White matter sits
deep in the brain, where in-
formation travels. Gray mat-
ter surrounds it and, among
other things, helps the brain
process information. In people who have schizophrenia, gray matter tends to leave first, with white matter going away over time.
FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2020 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 9-B