The Powers of The Human Mind
The Main Function of the Human Brain: The human brain is very complicated and has many components. The human brain is the control system of the human body. The mind is the main organ of the nervous system. The human brain tells the human body what to do and when to do it. It has been proven that "the human brain is the control center of the nervous system. The brain receives an input message from the sensory organs and sends an output message to the muscles." (Lewis) The brain is probably the most important organ in the human body. The human brain is like the "boss", it gives orders to other part of the body.
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Anatomy and Specific Functions of the Human Brain: According to mayfeildclinic.com, "the human brain is split into many components. It is divided into nonspecific parts like the right side of the brain and the left side of the brain. The left side of the brain controls the muscles in the human body and the right side controls skills and thinking". You could also split the human brain into components of the major parts of the brain. Research shows that "the major parts of the brain are cerebrum (which is the biggest), cerebellum, and brainstem. The cerebrum is composed of the right and left hemispheres and performs higher functions like interpreting touch, vision and hearing, speech, emotion, learning and fine control of movement. The cerebellum is located under the cerebrum and its function is coordinate muscle movement, posture, and balance. The brainstem includes the midbrain and connects the cerebrum and cerebellum to the the spinal cord. The brainstem function is to perform heart rate, breathing, body temperature, sleep cycles, digestion, and many more. " (Lewis) You can also divide the brain by its lobes. Humanbrainfacts.org states, " you can divide the brain by the parietal lobes, occipital lobes, frontal lobes, and temporal lobes. The parietal lobes is responsible for management of body position, handwriting, and sensation. The occipital lobes house the visual processing system of the brain. The motor function, judgement, and problem solving is done in the frontal lobes. In the temporal lobes of the brain, processing of memory and hearing is accomplished."
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Mind and Body Connection: According to michiganpsychologicalassociation.org, "through the mind-body connection, our thoughts and emotions can play a key role in our health." Our personal thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and attitudes can affect our biological health in a both positive and negative way. How does it work? The previous source also states "thought, feelings, and emotional states can trigger chain reactions that affect blood chemistry, heart rate, and the activity of every cell and organ in the body. Emotions can also affect your body's reaction to stresses and strains, which can cause many physical problems." The mind and body connection plays a huge role in treating health problems and making advancement in medicine. According to umm.edu, "mind-body medicine uses the power of thoughts and emotions to influence the physical health." In past history, Mind and body connection was the basis. This webpage also mentions that "most ancient healing practices, such as traditional Chinese medicine, the links between the mind and body was emphasized." Yoga and meditation was a main healing treatment for many in the past and is still used today.
Brain Disorders: According to webmd.com, some examples of brain disorders include:
- Meningitis: "Meningitis is inflammation of the lining around the brainier spinal cord, usually due to infection. Symptoms include neck stiffness, headache, fever, and confusion."
- Encephalitis: "Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain tissue, usually due to a viral infection Usually occurs with meningitis."
- Brain abscess: "A pocket of infection in the brain, usually caused by bacteria."
Brain Diseases: Webmd.com also explains brain diseases and provides examples, which include:
- Seizures: Seizures are symptoms of brain diseases. "Epilepsy, which is a condition characterized by recurring seizures caused by abnormal and excessive electrical activity in the brain."
- Trauma: Brain trauma includes concussions. "Concussion, which is a brain injury that causes a temporary disturbance in brain function. It can result in unconciousness, confusion, headaches, concentration problem, and memory loss. There can also be a permanent traumatic brain injury with obvious mental impairment. A specific traumatic disease is intracerebral hemorrhage, which is any bleeding inside the brain that can occur after traumatic injury like a stroke as a result of high blood pressure."
- Tumors, Masses, and Increased Pressure: "Brain tumor, which is when any abnormal tissue growth inside the brain, whether cancerous or benign, brain tumors usually causes problems because of the pressure the tumor exerts on the normal brain. An example of a specific brain tumor is glioblastoma, which is an aggressive and cancerous brain tumor that progresses rapidly." There are also cases where fluid in the brain exerts an increased amount pressure on the brain. "An example is of fluid causes pressure on the brain is hydrocephalus, which is an abnormally increased amount of cerebrospinal (brain) fluid inside the skull usually because the fluid is not circulating properly."
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Fun Facts About the Human Brain:
- According to piedmont.org, "the average adult human brain weighs about three pounds, has texture like firm jelly, and is made of 75 percent of water."
- Humanbrainfacts.org states, "that researchers have found that when we learn something new, is alters the structure of the brain."
- Research shows that "the human brain uses at least 20 percent of oxygen in the whole body." (Bernstein)
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