Olfaction: Your Nose Knows

So we all know we have five senses; sight, hearing, taste smell and touch. I think we all know by now what we can do with each of this senses BUT would you be able to explain what or exactly how this senses work? Today we'll be discussing one of these senses in particular and that is, the sense of smell. Can you imagine what it would be like to go around in life without being able to smell the food you eat or not being able to be outside in a spring afternoon and smell the fresh scent of the flowers, trees, and grass? I mean there are some situations I think I could get by without smelling, but we won't be thinking of those today.

So the sense of smell is usually referred to as that, the sense of smell but today I'd like for you all to learn of a new term; olfaction. Olfaction, which is the sense of smell, is the response to chemicals that contact the membranes inside the nose. It plays an important role on our food selection and believe it or not in social behavior as well.

Of course the nose is the organ responsible for the sense of smell but have you ever wondered how it gets transmitted or signaled to our brain, so we can somehow know whether we like a smell or not? Take a look at the image below (I'm a visual learner so seeing videos and images explaining step by step of systems and procedures really help me understand them better, and I hope it does the same for you).

The neurons responsible for smell are the olfactory cells which are located in the (Cilia) nasal cavity, you can see them in the closer image of them below. As the image depicts once the odorant molecules are inhaled, they activate the olfactory receptor cells by binding to receptors, at the same time its axon carries an impulse to the olfactory bulb. The Olfactory bulb then sends axons to the olfactory area of the cerebral cortex, hypothalamus amygdala, and the hippocampus where a complex substance can activate a scattered population of cells.

As with anything else humans differentiate in olfaction. Here are some facts I found to be quite interesting:

• Everyone has a unique "smell print". No two people smell the same way.
• Scents can cue memories. As in when you smell a specific scent it might take you back to for example when you were a kid and your grandma baked for you.
• Women tend to have stronger smell senses than men.
• Dogs' olfactory ability is estimated to be 1,000 to 10,000 times better than humans.
• About 5% of the population suffers of Anosmia; a disorder in which you can't smell.
• A cockroach antenna has 195,000 olfactory receptors.

Want to test yourself on what you learned on today's blog? Go ahead and take the Olfaction Quiz! Let me know how you do on it!




http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/nosek.html
http://compassionate-therapy.net.au/resources/the-senses-olfaction/

Alzheimer's; The epidemic

Can you imagine what it is like to wake up from a nap and not know where you're at? Add to that having a young man tell you he is your son, but you simply don't recall ever having a child. Unfortunately, this is a scenario people with Alzheimer's go through multiple times a day at times. I firsthand know how hard it can be to have a relative with that condition, in my case it was my great grandfather who was diagnosed with it.

Alzheimer's is a neurological disease in which brain cells die causing memory loss and cognitive decline, this may leave you wondering what exactly happens to the brain when a large amount of cells die. As you can see in the image below it causes the brain to shrink.

As we all know any damage to the brain can be devastating, consequently a person with Alzheimer's suffers of the following:

• Memory Loss
• Confusion
• Depression
• Restlessness
• Hallucinations
• Delusions
• Sleeplessness
• Loss appetite

Unfortunately as the disease progresses so does the seriousness of this symptoms.

Many people tend to think that Alzheimer's is simply a result of old age, to many's surprise it can actually be due to genetics as well. In addition, people who have suffered of a head trauma, or simply have high blood pressure can be prone to it as well. Something I found to be very interesting and is one of the reasons to why I am talking about this today is that women have a high probability of being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease when compared to men. As a woman, I found this quite alarming. I for a fact am certain that not one of the females (Grandma, aunts, sister, etc.) I know are aware of this statistics thus I'd like to raise some sort of awareness. 

Take a look at this video to learn about some very scary statistics over this disease I promise you this 1 minute video is worthwhile.

Unfortunately there is no known cure for this type of Dementia, but know that there are treatments out there that can slow down the worsening of the symptoms and improve their quality of life.  Know that you are not alone in this journey just like you there are millions of others with a relative or family friend with this condition. When times are hard, simply try to reach out to others who are going through the same situation as you, one way you can do this is through online support groups. Go ahead and click on this Link  to get in contact with support groups. Or if you prefer to speak to someone call this number 1- 800-272- 3900 or 1-866-403-3073

If you want more information on Alzheimer’s disease take a look at the video below or simply click on the links I put up as well. As always, I hope you all enjoyed today’s blog.

http://www.alz.org/braintour/severe_stage.asp

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159442.php#causes

One Brain, Two Hemispheres

So we all know we have a brain and that it is basically the control system of our entire body, but how many of you know that our brain consists of two hemispheres and that each hemisphere specializes in different functions and parts of our body? Don’t worry this week I will be talking about the two hemispheres in our brain and their input.

In order to begin explaining what each hemisphere is responsible for you must understand that the two hemispheres are connected through the corpus callosum which allows them to communicate. It is the corpus callosum that enables brain lateralization as well. In other words the work is divided between both hemispheres with the exception of the trunk and facial muscles, which both hemispheres control.

Initially you would think that the right hemisphere is responsible for our right side and vice versa, but guess what!? That is not how it works, turns out its kind of the opposite! Surprisingly enough each brain hemisphere is connected to skin receptors and muscles on the opposite side. An example of this would be hearing, both hemispheres receive the information from both ears yet, they receive stronger information from the contralateral ear.

Let's further talk about what's each hemisphere's forte.

The Right Hemisphere

This hemisphere can recognize emotions in others and spatial relationships better than the left hemisphere. The right hemisphere tends to look more on overall patterns as well as holistic thinking. Below are listed a couple of dominant functions of the right hemisphere

* Spatial abilities

* Art, Music

* Visual Imagery

* Cognitive Functioning

* Face Recognition

* Creative Thinking

* Nonverbal

The Left Hemisphere

This hemisphere specializes more in language, and logic. I also listed a couple of dominant functions of the left hemisphere.

* Science and Math

* Reasoning

* Writing

* Organization

* Abstract Thinking

* Details

* Verbal

Even though each hemisphere emphasizes on different functions they do work together. Yet, some people tend to be more left brain oriented, vice versa, or simply equally oriented by both. Want to know if you are right or left brain dominant? How about you test yourself with the following:

If you said yellow you could be left brain dominant,
but if you said green you are right brain dominant.

Name the color of the first word on the image below out loud... How hard was that?

On the video below, you will be asked to concentrate on the nose, give it a try and let me know what image was more dominant. (I can't talk more about it before you see it or I will spoil it for you!)

 So what did you all think, are you left or right brain dominant? Comment below and let me know! If you want to learn a little more or you simply want to understand something better feel free to take a look at the links below they are definitely excellent educative websites and videos.

References:

http://www.mindupdate.com/2007/09/brain-asymmetry-and-why-it-is-important/ http://www.livescience

https://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/split.hmtl

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Qi5_dANWYo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCiVXQUhhRs