technology and the brain Archives - Amazing Health Advances

Dad’s Quest to Aid Son Leads to Stroke-Recovery Technology

The AHA! Team — Wed, 09 Oct 2024 08:31:39 +0000

John Jeffay via Israel21c – BRAIN.Q helmet’s tailored, low-intensity, low-frequency electromagnetic stimulation aims to enhance and accelerate the brain’s recovery after stroke. Yaron Segal has, like many thousands of enterprising Israelis, identified a problem. And like so many in a country driven by technological innovation, he’s established a startup to find a solution. But he’s not so interested in the payday “exit” that attracts most entrepreneurs in the Startup Nation. His ultimate goal is to find a treatment for his son Lear, born 23 years ago born with familial dysautonomia, a rare and progressive genetic neurological disorder. Segal is not an obvious candidate for the job. He trained as a physicist, specializing in climate, satellites, and three-dimensional models of the atmosphere. But when Lear was diagnosed at the age of three months, Segal decided that he would devote his energy, passion and intellect to finding an effective treatment. Remarkable discoveries He isn’t there yet, but in the long – and often frustrating – process of trying, he has made some remarkable discoveries about the brain’s ability to repair itself, and has developed a treatment that has the potential to help stroke patients live more independent lives. Segal is confident that the same technology will, at some point in the future, also benefit people living with depression, PTSD, ADHD, spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries and other brain-related conditions … and familial dysautonomia. His noninvasive, cloud-based “brainwave helmet” activates a low-intensity electromagnetic field around the patient’s head. In clinical trials with stroke patients, it was demonstrated the treatment significantly improved outcomes in the treated group compared to the control group. It is believed that the investigational technology device encourages the growth of new links between brain cells – links that can get broken by a trauma, or in the case of familial dysautonomia, never existed in the first place. BRAIN.Q, the startup Segal cofounded in 2016, now has 25 staff in Israel and the USA and has attracted $50 million in funding. The crazy guy Segal was, as he puts it, “the crazy guy” who became convinced that the adult brain was capable, with encouragement, of repairing itself. Not completely, but significantly. His theory flew in the face of received medical wisdom. “Neuroplasticity” is the brain’s ability to change and adapt throughout a person’s life and reorganize its structure, functions and connections in response to new experiences, learning or environmental changes. But that couldn’t happen fully in damaged parts of the brain where there is no neural activity – until Segal’s breakthrough. He started experimenting in 2010, funded by friends and family, and within two years he’d shown that mice and rats could, with an early form of his treatment, learn to walk and function again after suffering a brain injury or a broken spinal cord. A potential investor showed the raw data from Segal’s experiment to an expert, who simply refused to accept it was possible. The dismissive response, Segal recalls, was: “I don’t believe it happened. You cannot revive links between cells.” Segal was disappointed but not dismayed. The next step was to test his breakthrough on humans. Faster recovery In a clinical trial conducted in India, stroke patients received the BRAIN.Q therapy using an earlier version of the device for 45 minutes a day, for two months. “The data points to faster recovery of the treated group, indicating that BRAIN.Q’s treatment may not only improve the overall recovery after stroke, but also shorten the recovery period. We hope to test this hypothesis in our ongoing clinical trial,” says Segal. “Some recovered dramatically in the first month, some in the second, depending on how injured the brain was. “People regained everyday function so that they didn’t need help with eating or changing clothes or bathing. “After two months of treatment someone who couldn’t move their legs and was in a wheelchair could walk. Sometimes with a stick, but they could walk.” Tools to fix the problem Stroke is a leading cause of adult disability worldwide. BRAIN.Q’s treatment reduces disability and enhances the potential for recovery. “We are affecting the brain directly, but in a non-invasive manner,” says Segal. “We are affecting the ability of the brain to regenerate connections between cells. “I don’t want to push the brain to do something that it can’t do by itself. I want to harness its natural pattern of waves,” he explains. “You can take a tow truck and drive your broken car all around the city. But I want to take it to the mechanic who will use simple tools and fix the problem.” How did he feel when he saw how the first patients had recovered? “I wanted to cry,” he says. He goes on to relate the story of a woman in Israel who suffered a spinal cord injury in a car crash and has regained control of her legs and bowels, thanks to BRAIN.Q. And there are many more examples. BRAIN.Q, based at the Hebrew University’s Givat Ram campus in Jerusalem, is now conducting trials of the investigational device at patients’ homes after they’ve been discharged from the hospital. “In the beginning I was the CEO because there was nobody else in the company,” says Segal. “Then I became the chief technical officer and now I’m chief of innovation because I think this is where I’m doing the best work I can do.” Can he help his son? Although his son Lear’s diagnosis set him on this journey, Segal eventually honed in on treating strokes because, in neurological terms, they are less complex than familial dysautonomia (also known as Riley-Day syndrome). Familial dysautonomia, particularly prevalent among individuals of Ashkenazi Jewish descent, affects the autonomic nervous system that controls involuntary bodily functions such as breathing, swallowing, digestion, tear production and muscle stability. Lear doesn’t have natural tears, can’t drink liquids, has to eat condensed food, and needs to be held while attempting to walk. In addition, he had spinal fusion surgery at the age of 10. “The most serious situation is when he is in crisis, meaning that whenever he has stress, his autonomic nervous system tries to balance his blood pressure, temperature and chemical balance, and fails. His body goes into ‘panic’ conditions, very similar to those when a normal person is bitten by a snake — he starts to vomit, his blood pressure skyrockets, his temperature increases,” Segal says. “The only way to help him is using medication that brings his autonomic nervous system to a halt, causing it to reset and resume normal operation.” Segal is hopeful that, in time, BRAIN.Q will find a way to re-grow neural links in people with this condition. Meanwhile, he is gratified that the technology can aid stroke patients. For more information, click here. To read the original article click here.

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Why We Don’t Need to Remember Everything

AHA Publisher — Fri, 06 May 2022 07:00:30 +0000

Dr. Caroline Leaf – In this podcast (episode #376) and blog, I talk about memory and how to improve it. We actually aren’t supposed to remember everything. The brain is designed to forget things that are not useful to us. In fact, trying to remember everything can cause neurochemical chaos in our neural circuitry because we are designed to selectively remember what interests us and what we need for particular tasks. However, we can also forget information because we did not build memory properly. This means that we build memories incorrectly and we cannot access information we need when we need it. Our memory is also affected when we stop learning. Our minds grow through deliberate and intentional deep thinking, which is necessary to keep the brain healthy. Chaotic thinking creates neurochemical chaos in the brain that can also affect memory. This is why it is so important to take the time to think about our thinking and control what we allow into our heads. Never let thoughts just wander through your mind unchecked, because thoughts are real things that have real effects in the brain and body. To practice doing this, focus on the “now” moment and observe your thoughts and feelings, perhaps writing down your thoughts in a journal to become aware of and organize them. As I have mentioned before, we merge with our environments because of the plasticity of our brains. Essentially, our brains respond to our minds (our thinking, feeling and choosing). How we react to the circumstances of life, and whatever we focus on the most, will be wired into our brains and influence our mental and physical health, which in turn impacts our ability to recall information. We need to pay attention to our external and internal (thought) environments, because if we keep focusing on our toxic thoughts, they grow and damage the brain. Memory issues are just some of the problems that can occur when we don’t pay attention to our thinking. So, take a few moments every day to write down what is happening in your life, what you feel, and how this is affecting your thinking. Analyze the relationship between your environment and your thoughts, and think of ways you can improve your external and internal environments to improve your mental health and ability to build memory. Additionally, toxic schedules can have a negative impact on our memory. Living under an unnecessary sense of urgency creates toxic stress that causes the blood vessels around the heart to constrict, restricting blood flow and oxygen to the brain and resulting in foggy thinking and memory problems. Rest is not just a “luxury”. The clock should not rule our lives. To incorporate more rest in your life, schedule in times to switch off. Give yourself time to breathe: get coffee with a friend, go on a date night or treat yourself to a spa day! This also means taking a break from technology! The average person spends up to eight hours a day using different technology. The fast pace of being “online” can create a toxic habit because itstimulates a temporary high, which can rob us of the ability to think deeply that is essential for good memory. The internal circuits of the brain tend to disconnect when we use technology for long periods of time, and this can lead to feelings of depression and memory loss. Thankfully, some of the worst effects of electronic devices, including their effects on our ability to think and learn, can be mitigated when devices are used less than two hours a day. When we find ways to limit our use of technology throughout the day, such as taking the time to go for a long walk in the park, playing with our children or pets, or reading a good book in the bath, we improve our mental and brain health. These “off” moments give the brain time to reboot, heal and build healthy memories. This includes social media! Instead of spending hours on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, limit your time on social media, spending an hour or so every day reading a newspaper or magazine article, or a chapter in a book, and thinking deeply about the information you have just read. Ask yourself what the author or authors are trying to say, answer your question by writing down several points, and discuss what you have read with a family member, friend or colleague. Thinking deeply about information fires up your mind, allowing you to build healthy memories and succeed in life! Some medications, particularly psychotropic drugs (such antidepressants, anti-anxiety medication, antipsychotics and stimulants) can also cause atrophy (shrinkage) of the brain. This has been scientifically shown to contribute to memory issues, amongst a myriad of other issues that can affect the systems and organs of the body. Always weigh the risks and benefits of these medications with a medical professional, and if you decide to come off your medication, do so under medical supervision, as withdrawal can be a challenging process. At the end of the day, it is important to remember that the brain can heal, change and grow new brain cells, so never give up hope! Memory is not fixed and determined. The more we learn to use our brain in a healthy way by thinking good thoughts, eating healthy, doing exercise and living fulfilled and enjoyable lives, the more we can build healthy memories and increase our intelligence. Remind yourself of this every day! To read the original article click here.

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