Parkinson's and Essential Tremor

Is there anything new about treating these tremors? The medication is killing me and doing little good and my hand shakes so badly I need someone to hold my arm steady just so I can put a pill into my mouth!

Essentially tremor is a challenge that most people have no idea about when they neither have it or know someone with Parkinson’s. Late last year, the FDA reportedly approved a new noninvasive treatment for both types of tremors. Known as Noninvasive Exablate Neuro, it utilizes MRI to guide ultrasound waves directly to the areas of the brain that are most affective. It destroys misfiring brain cells without requiring the opening of the skull or the implanting of electrodes, both of which require opening the skull. You might want to discuss this with your Neurologist and see if you are a candidate for this relatively new procedure.

Brain and Music Recognition

Brain and Music Recognition Does anything different happen in the brain when it hears familiar versus unfamiliar music? Good question. A study showed a couple of things show that the brain has recognized a piece of familiar music. According to the abstract, researchers used electroencephalography (EEG) and pupillometry to reveal the temporal signatures of the brain processes that allow differentiation between a familiar, well liked, and an unfamiliar piece of music. Professor Chait pointed out that the eye pupil dilated within 100-300 milliseconds after the start of a song if the subject recognized a familiar song; and a burst of electrical activity in the brain occurred around 500-800 milliseconds after the start of the song. These effects do not occur when the brain does not recognize familiar music. So, yes, something different does happen in the brain when it recognizes familiar music--especially when it likes the music!

Brain Creativity and Sleep

Someone told me that creative people have sleep disorders. Is that really true? Studies at the University of Haifa found that people who are more creative tend to go to sleep later, get up later, and have worse sleep overall. They studied both visually and auditorily creative subjects. Both reported sleep disturbances during the night. Higher visual creativity was associated with higher sleep disturbance, daytime dysfunction, and lower overall sleep quality. Higher verbal creativity was associated with longer sleep duration and later sleep midpoint. No one knows the reason for this. Conjecture by the study’s authors theorized that a ‘surplus’ of visual creativity might make the individual more alert, and this could lead to sleep disturbances. For the verbally creative individuals, protracted sleep might facilitate processes that support the creative process while they are awake.

Iclandic Horses and Genetics

Are “Genetics” the reason Iceland carefully manages their Icelandic Horses differently from other countries? I do not breed horses so am unfamiliar with policies of different countries. When in Iceland however, I was told that the Icelandic horse breed was developed in Iceland. The horses are not huge, sometimes the size of a pony, but they are beautiful with long manes. They have two gaits in addition to the typical walk, trot, and canter/gallop commonly displayed by other breeds. These horses are said to be long-lived and hardy. In Iceland these Icelandic horses are plagued with very few diseases. I also learned that Iceland has a law that prevents horses from being imported into the country. In addition, if someone exports an Icelandic horse to another country, the animal is not permitted to return to Iceland. The only breed of horse in Iceland, these horses are also popular internationally. Apparently, sizable populations exist in Europe and North America. The breed is still used for traditional sheepherding work in Iceland, as well as for leisure, showing, and racing.

Genes Impacts

I read that in Iceland two people must have permission from the government in order to marry. What are we coming to? When I was speaking in Iceland⸺wonderful country, and I have loved my visits there!⸺I was told was told that because it is a relatively small and isolated country, and there have been relatively few intermarriages with people from other countries, a couple does need to notify the Government of their wish to marry. Iceland will then trace their genealogy and tell them if they are “too closely related” to have a wise marriage. If individuals have a similar genome that contains mutations, one gene might not cause any disease or malformations. However, when combined with another similar gene, the risk does increase. If individuals were guaranteed protection from procreation, it wouldn’t matter who they married and what genes they carried. The issue comes when no one knows for sure how combining genes from two individuals will impact their offspring.

Birth Order and Laughter

Some studies have shown that only or eldest children tend to laugh less than others. No doubt that is related, at least in part, to the fact that parents tend to practice on only or eldest children; and tend to lighten up on succeeding children if there is more than one. In multiple sibling families, it tends to be the youngest child who laughs the most, and the oldest who laughs the least. Some studies have shown that if there are five or more years between children, each will carry some characteristics of an eldest or only child—in addition to characteristics related to a middle child or the youngest child. Think back to your childhood. Who laughed in your family? Was laughter encouraged? In one of my presentations and elderly gentleman spoke up and said he had absolutely nothing to laugh about. I admittedly took a risk when I suggested he go home, take all his clothes off, and try to identify which body part needed to be ironed first. People started laughing just at the thought and soon the whole room followed suit. Fortunately, so did he. “I just might try that,” he said between guffaws. Do whatever it takes. Choose to laugh. It matters.

Choose to Laugh

You rarely laugh because there is nothing to laugh about? Laughter is a choice. I hear people say, "Oh, my, that was really funny wasn't it!" but they aren't choosing to laugh about it and the benefits to brain and body come more with laughter than simply the recognition that something was funny. I find humor in almost everything. Perhaps you might want to take a laugh class or evaluate the level to which you have developed your sense of humor. If you can laugh at yourself and the vagaries of life, you carry with you an unending supply of triggers for laughter. When I was working as Compliance Officer and Risk Manager for a large healthcare system, if I needed a chuckle all I had to do was stop and read a chart or two. For example, one entry read: “Large brown stool ambulating in the hall.” I burst out laughing thinking, what that a large brown stool on which people can sit or was it a large brown stool that was related to GI evacuation? A few moments of belly laughter can change one’s neurochemistry for several hours.