How Does Schizophrenia Affect The Body – Toby Pillinger does not work for, consult with, own stock in, or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and discloses no relevant affiliations other than their academic appointment. have done
Schizophrenia is considered a disorder of the mind that affects the way a person thinks, feels and behaves. But our latest research shows that organs other than the brain are also altered at the onset of the disease.
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How Does Schizophrenia Affect The Body
Scientists have long known that people with schizophrenia have much higher rates of physical illness than the general population, and that this contributes to the surprisingly high rate of premature death. People with this disorder die 15 to 20 years earlier than the average person.
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This poor physical health is often seen as a secondary effect of the disease. Antipsychotic medications, for example, are associated with increased risk of weight gain and type 2 diabetes. Lifestyle factors also play a role. A person with debilitating mental symptoms is more likely to skip exercise and eat a poor diet.
However, in recent years, scientists have noticed that people who have recently been diagnosed with schizophrenia and are not yet taking any medication show evidence of physical changes, such as an overactive immune system. . Could it be that schizophrenia is actually a whole body disorder?
My colleagues and I examined evidence of physiological changes around the body at the onset of schizophrenia and compared them with evidence of changes within the brain in the same group of people. We pooled data from several studies examining markers of inflammation, hormone levels, and heart disease risk factors, including glucose and cholesterol levels. We also collected data from studies looking at brain structure, levels of various chemicals within the brain, and markers of brain activity.
We have shown that compared with the general population, early-onset schizophrenia is associated with changes in brain structure and function. We have also shown that early schizophrenia is associated with various changes around the body. We calculated the magnitude of these changes using a statistical measure known as effect size. At the onset of schizophrenia, we found that there was no difference in effect sizes for changes within the brain compared to effect sizes for changes around the body, suggesting that schizophrenia may indeed be a whole-body disorder. And who must live. This is how treatment is done.
Mental Health Comorbidities
There are three theories that may explain how changes within the brain may be related to changes around the body in schizophrenia.
First, dysfunction around the body can cause changes in the brain, which can eventually lead to schizophrenia. This process has been observed in some rare cancers that produce antibodies that target the brain and cause psychosis. If the tumor is removed, psychological experiences improve.
Second, the symptoms of schizophrenia may result from a physical health disorder. An example of this is psychotic stress resulting from high levels of the steroid hormone cortisol. High cortisol levels are associated with weight gain, diabetes and high blood pressure.
Third, symptoms of schizophrenia and physical health disorders may arise through different mechanisms but from a common risk factor. An example of this is how a pregnant mother’s experience of hunger makes her child more likely to develop diabetes and schizophrenia in adulthood. Maternal malnutrition may result in an increased risk of schizophrenia in children due to impaired brain development. The increased risk of diabetes may be due to changes in the baby’s ability to metabolize glucose, which again may result from maternal malnutrition.
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We need more work to understand whether changes in the body environment are a cause or a consequence of schizophrenia. One approach is to look at people who are at risk of developing schizophrenia to see how changes around the body develop compared to people who develop schizophrenia. More work is also needed to see how changes in the body environment respond to changes in the severity of schizophrenia symptoms.
Finally, the majority of premature deaths seen in schizophrenia are due to cardiovascular disease. Life expectancy in schizophrenia has failed to improve over the past decades. Studies are needed to determine whether early physical health treatment will reduce mortality in schizophrenia.
Write an essay and join a growing community of over 170,800 academics and researchers from 4,735 institutions. Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness that affects the way a person thinks, feels and behaves. People with schizophrenia seem to have lost touch with reality, which can be distressing for them, their family and friends. The symptoms of schizophrenia can make it difficult to participate in normal, everyday activities, but effective treatments are available. Many people who receive treatment are able to participate in school or work, gain independence, and enjoy personal relationships.
It is important to recognize the symptoms of schizophrenia and seek help as soon as possible. People with schizophrenia are usually diagnosed between the ages of 16 and 30, after their first episode of psychosis. Starting treatment as soon as possible after the first episode of psychosis is an important step toward recovery. However, research shows that gradual changes in thinking, mood, and social functioning often appear before the first episode of psychosis. Schizophrenia is rare in young children.
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The symptoms of schizophrenia can vary from person to person, but they generally fall into three main categories: psychotic, negative, and cognitive.
Psychotic symptoms include changes in the way a person thinks, acts, and experiences the world. People with psychotic symptoms may lose a shared sense of reality with others and experience the world in a distorted way. For some people, these symptoms come and go. For others, symptoms stabilize over time. Psychological symptoms include:
Negative symptoms include lack of motivation, lack of interest or enjoyment in daily activities, withdrawal from social life, difficulty expressing emotions, and difficulty functioning in general.
Cognitive symptoms include problems with attention, concentration and memory. These symptoms can make it difficult to follow a conversation, learn new things, or remember appointments. A person’s level of cognitive functioning is the best predictor of their daily functioning. Health care providers assess cognitive functioning using specialized tests.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has acknowledged that people with certain mental disorders, including depression and schizophrenia, may be more likely to become seriously ill from COVID-19. Learn more about getting help and finding a healthcare provider.
Most people with schizophrenia are not violent. In general, people with schizophrenia are more likely to be hurt by others than people without the illness. For people with schizophrenia, the risk of self-harm and violence against others is high when the illness is untreated. It is important to help people who show symptoms get treatment as soon as possible.
Although some of the symptoms may seem similar on the surface, schizophrenia is not a separate identity disorder (which used to be called multiple personality disorder or split personality). People with dissociative identity disorder have two or more separate identities that exist and that alternately control them.
Genetics: Schizophrenia sometimes runs in families. However, just because one family member has schizophrenia does not mean that other family members will too. Studies show that many different genes can increase a person’s chance of developing schizophrenia, but no single gene causes the disorder by itself.
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Environment: Research suggests that a combination of genetic factors and aspects of a person’s environment and life experiences may play a role in the development of schizophrenia. These environmental factors can include living in poverty, a stressful or dangerous environment, and prenatal exposure to viruses or nutritional problems.
Brain structure and function: Research shows that people with schizophrenia may be more likely to have differences in the size of certain brain regions and the connections between brain regions. Some of these brain changes can develop before birth. Researchers are working to understand how brain structure and function may be related to schizophrenia.
Current treatments for schizophrenia focus on helping people manage their symptoms, improve daily functioning, and achieve personal life goals, such as completing an education, pursuing a career, and forming appropriate relationships.
Antipsychotic medications can help make psychotic symptoms less intense and less frequent. These medications are usually taken daily in pill or liquid form. Some antipsychotic medications are given as injections once or twice a month.
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If a person’s symptoms do not improve with typical antipsychotic medications, they may be given clozapine. People taking clozapine should have regular blood tests to check for a potentially dangerous side effect that occurs in 1-2% of patients.
People react to antipsychotic medications in different ways. It is important to report any side effects to a healthcare provider. Many people taking antipsychotic medications experience side effects such as weight gain, dry mouth, restlessness, and lethargy when they start taking these medications. Some of these side effects may go away with time, while others may remain.
Shared decision-making between healthcare providers and patients is the recommended strategy for determining the best type of drug or combination of drugs and the appropriate dosage. to find
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