Nerves
We could write a whole book about the nervous system and baffle you with medical terms but being real people we choose not to. There are many elements that comprise the nervous system but it is how it works that is important.
So lets start with an analogy first. At its simplest the nervous system is simply a network of wiring carrying electrical signals from the head to the muscles and organs. At a more complex level it is like your car – with a central processor that controls every component in the car and sends and receives signals that confirm everything is working well or that something needs adjusting. The CPU is the brain and the elements of the car represent the organs and muscles.
Lets take a moment to look at dysfunction in the nervous system because that’s what we tend to notice. The modes of failure, to use an engineering term, can be grouped as follows:
- brain not working – i.e. not sending the correct signals – wrong signals, weak signals, inappropriate signals – Alzheimer’s, Parkinsons
- signals going to the wrong places – either leaking out early or simply not getting through due to a break in the wiring – Multiple sclerosis
- muscles and organs not being able to recognise the signals and move/react – all the above
- the return signals not functioning in the same way – missing the feedback – Cerebral Palsy etc.
Now the medical world have given things all sorts of weird names but the processes are all there in this diagram:
Example 1 – Multiple Sclerosis
The nervous system is one area where the medical and pharmaceutical world really struggle for answers – there are very few drugs that work (even short term) and surgery is not an option in most cases. So what are the alternatives? If we get the right food into our systems then we give the body the best possible chance of keeping things going. Let just take a quick look at Multiple Sclerosis. This illness devastates lives and families and is essentially a situation where the, in the early stages, nervous impulses leak out of the nerves before they should because of leaky insulation. Ultimately the conductive mechanism aslo breaks down but the early symptoms show the best results.
The insulating sheath around the nerves is made of a substance called Myelin which is a direct derivative of our old friend/enemy Cholesterol. Now, in my opinion, Cholesterol gets an unfair press and far from being a problem is actually essential – the body even has to make it. Now imagine if the diet is low in Cholesterol and the Myelin sheath is breaking down, or being attacked by the body’s own immune response, and it can’t be manufactured by the body quick enough; something has to give and it could be that the weak link is the insulating sheath around the nerves that gives way first. Nerve impulses leak out, muscles become weaker or give out completely, while others go into spasm because they are receiving incorrect nerve impulses.
The linkage between Multiple Sclerosis and low, even artificially lowered, Cholesterol levels is far from proven but the coincidence is obvious. The obsesive drive towards low Cholesterol levels from the mid 1980s coincides very well with the rise in diagnosis of MS.
Example 2 – Alzheimers and Parkinsons
These two conditions affect the brain and have some remarkable similarities. They both involve proteins and peptide chains lodging in the brain in areas where they shouldn’t exist – its called agglomeration and many drug companies are working on drugs that block or inhibit the clumping together of these proteins in the hope that it will delay the onset or arrest the deterioration of these illnesses. Is it possible that dietary intervention earlier in life could pave the way for preventative therapy.
In Conclusion
The nervous system is incredibly complex and very poorly understood by almost everyone and while drugs may provide a treatment option there are many things that are food based that can influence the future outcome and best of all theya re here today and low cost.
