Does the cold weather make your brain fog or fibro fog better or worse? Find out what others think here…………..

Cognitive dysfunction (also called brain fog , fibro fog or clouding of consciousness) was a big topic in the early days of Patient Talk.

Brain fog

Brain fog

And at the same time we were also interested in the impact of the reasons ( and the weather) on pain levels. You can see the results of our poll on the subject here.

So I was very interested when Kelly asked “Since the weather has changed to cold, my cognitive function is getting way worse, where I can’t get words out of mouth. Does anyone else experience this the cold?” in our Multiple Sclerosis group yesterday morning.

The feedback was very interesting.

Tracet replied “Yes. Does anyone else have trouble getting people to understand this happens to you? I think people are starting to assume I’m just an idiot, even after explaining cognitive dysfunction.”

For Roberto it is the other way round ” I experience this but it happens when the weather gets warm”.

” Definitely far worse with the cold, I like the heat, thought I was strange as the ‘norm’ is the opposite. I practise Bikram Yoga in the heat which helps me a lot, my neurologist freaked when I told her, but now she thinks its wonderful!” was Brendan’s suggestion.

But for Kristine “I love all the seasons. snow and sun are both fun! Humidity is my killer…”.

No the other hand for Charlene ” For me it is the extreme weather. Extreme cold and heat both make it worse. Of course extreme is a relative term! Lol extreme heat is like 80 and extreme cold is like below 45. Lol”.

But for some ” Doesn’t matter what season it is my mind is one purr muddle I nix up words loose train if thought an forgot what a conversation is I stair in to space like no one is home …but hay I can’t argue with anyone as I forget what has made me mad !!! The joys hay”

So what about you?

Even better could you share your story in the comments section below.

Cognitive dysfunction refers to the loss of intellectual functions such as reasoning, memory , and general thinking which together impair day to day living.. People with brain fog have difficulty with verbal recall, basic arithmetic, and overall concentration.

It can be caused by a variety of medical conditions which include multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia (hence the term fibro fog), lupus, chronic fatigue syndrome, depression, hypothyroidism, Lyme’s disease and stress. What is interesting , at least to me, is how many of these disorders are auto-immune conditions.

Many thanks in advance for all your help!

Fibro Fog. Ten Simple Effective Solutions.

Image result for Fibro Fog. Ten Simple Effective Solutions

 

Fibro fog can dramatically affect your quality of life. Cognitive dysfunction is one of the most common complaints of people who have fibromyalgia.

Sometimes brain fog is more of a disability than our physical symptoms.

So, is there something that you can do to improve your cognitive functioning?

This video outlines 10 effective fibromyalgia treatment options for you to consider.

Cognitive dysfunction – What causes brain fog?

What causes brain fog?

What causes brain fog?

What are the causes of brain fog? Also known as fibro fog or cognitive dysfunction.

Very common with fibromyalgia, multiple sclerosis and different kinds of arthritis!

Thought this article was very interesting. If you have any concerns about brain fog please contact your doctor!

Can High Blood Pressure Affect Your Brain Health?

Can High Blood Pressure Affect Your Brain Health?

Can High Blood Pressure Affect Your Brain Health?

High blood pressure is very common among adults. The blood pressure measured above 120/80 mmHg is considered to be higher than normal blood pressure. The statistics released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that 1 in 3 adults in the United States have high blood pressure. High blood pressure usually doesn’t have symptoms. However, sometimes the people with high blood pressure may experience headache, blurred vision, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, shortness of breath, and chest pain.

If high blood pressure usually doesn’t have symptoms, then what should you do? I guess I don’t have to tell you about it. You need to get your blood pressure checked every now and then. There are people who just ignore their high blood pressure, and due to their carelessness, it leads them to various diseases, which are caused by uncontrolled blood pressure. If you have high blood pressure, then you should better get it under control. In this article, you will get to know about how high blood pressure can affect your brain health.

How high blood pressure can have an adverse impact on your brain health?

It is very crucial to control your blood pressure to reduce the chance of suffering from brain diseases. There are many things, which can lead to high blood pressure like smoking, stress, overweight, salty foods, and others. You should modify your lifestyle to minimize the chances of having blood pressure. When you minimize your chances of having high blood pressure, you automatically minimize the chances of suffering from brain diseases as well.

Some of the brain diseases are dementia, Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and others. The statistics show that 5.4 million Americans are diagnosed with Alzheimer and 1 million Americans are diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Moreover, the numbers are expected to further increase in the upcoming years. With the high prevalence of brain diseases, it is necessary to take good care of your brain health. In addition to controlling your blood pressure, you should also consume best brain foods for improving your brain health.

Your brain needs sufficient blood supply to function properly. High blood pressure could cause severe damage to your brain if it is not controlled. Here are the ways how high blood pressure can affect your brain health.

Transient ischemic attack (TIA): TIA is also called mini stroke. It is simply a temporary obstruction of blood supply to your brain. The root cause of TIA is high blood pressure. TIA is generally caused because of a blood clot or atherosclerosis, which are caused because of high blood pressure.

Damages and weakens your brain’s blood vessels: Uncontrolled blood pressure will damage and weakens the blood vessels in your brain. This will further lead in narrowing, rupturing, or leakage. When this happens, you are likely to suffer from stroke. Moreover, uncontrolled blood pressure will also form a blood clot in your arteries, which blocks the blood from getting to the brain, which will lead to stroke.

Dementia: Dementia is simply a brain disease, which causes thinking, reasoning, memory, and other problems related to functions of the brain. There are various causes of dementia, and one of the causes is high blood pressure. As high blood pressure results in obstruction in arteries, which is responsible for providing blood to the brain, it causes vascular dementia.

Mild Cognitive Impairment: You need a good memory to smoothly carry out your day to day activities. However, with cognitive impairment, you will not be able to smoothly carry out your day to day operation. Mild cognitive impairment may be caused due to aging, diabetes, smoking, and high blood pressure. The obstruction of blood flow to your brain caused because of high blood pressure does not allow your brain to function properly, which may lead to mild cognitive impairment. You can try some of the top brain supplements like Geniux to improve your memory.

Conclusion

You are now well aware about the risks of not controlling your blood pressure. It is absolutely critical to control your blood pressure to improve your overall health. Your brain is a central processing unit of your body, and you don’t want to be careless regarding your brain health. You should seek for every possible way to improve your brain health; however, the first step is to control your blood pressure. You can also try some of the top memory aids for improving your memory.

I hope you will modify your lifestyle after reading this article. You can modify your diet, and do some physical workouts enhance your overall health. The study shows that exercises can also enhance your overall brain health. You don’t need to panic; you just need to take necessary actions to improve your health and lifestyle.

Author Bio:
Annie Lizstan works as a health and beauty consultant for online websites and an independent researcher by profession. She had completed her studies from university of Arizona and lives in Wasilla, Alaska.  She has experience researching as a passion as well as profession. You can also connect with her on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

Do breast cancer treatments affect cognitive functioning?

Breast cancer screening

Breast cancer screening

Breast cancer is indeed a biggest threat for the women. It was scarier in the past but with the passage of time things have been improved yet there is need to conduct more researches in order to improve the situation. Breast cancer screening is the first step to start with. This start makes so many things clear and gives a way to follow. This way is actually the phase where one has to go through several treatments once diagnosed with breast cancer.


Unfortunately some of the treatments have side effects as well. Side effects are though not an enigma but obviously one has to be careful about all the related things. Certainly experts are working on it to lessen the harmful effects of the prescribed treatments not only with regards to breast cancer but also the other diseases.

Side effects of chemotherapy for breast cancer…

Several treatments have different side effects. They vary from each other with regards to the procedure as well as the patient. It is said that chemotherapy effects the cognitive functioning of the patient. Researches are working to find out what exactly causes this and which parts of the brain are getting affected by the said treatment. Like breast cancer screening, doctors have done screening of the brains as well of those patients who are going through the chemotherapy for their breast cancer.

It was very much evident that the functioning of the brain which is related to the planning, attention and memory seemed fragile in the patients who were undergoing the chemotherapy than those who have not gone through the same procedure.

Accumulating the findings…

These findings regarding the side effects of chemotherapy will further help out to find out the ways to reduce the side effects of this particular treatment. It has also confirmed the complaints registered by many women regarding their cognitive functioning. It has also emphasized to realize this matter seriously and to work together to solve the issue.

Shelli Kesler who is the head of this study says, “There has been a controversy whether it’s the disease itself or hormonal blockade medications or chemotherapy”.

This particular disorder is actually the “chemo brain” which is commonly noticed in the patients with chemotherapy treatment. There were several women included in this experiment and those who didn’t have any chemotherapy have shown combatively better memory condition and functioning. It was also observed that issues related with the memory are also linked with the person’s own ability. Here the importance of breast cancer screening becomes more essential.




Reasons behind the cognitive disorder…

Several reasons or causes have been presented like,

  1. Chemotherapy being a toxic for the brain’
  2. This procedure may cause inflammation to the brain
  3. This treatment is also linked with some damage to DNA

This is not only the chemotherapy but hormonal therapy is also said to has some side effects for the brain functioning. So it’s not just the chemotherapy.

Shelli Kesler says, People sometimes think women are exaggerating [chemo brain] but this study showed that self-reported impairment actually correlates with brain impairment pointing to the fact that they should not be ignored”.

The real thing is to work together to lessen the side effects by eliminating the dangerous and problem creating elements in the said treatments as we have to proceed with these treatments if diagnosed with the breast cancer.

Author Bio :

Jasmine William an enthusiastic writer and a researcher who tend to follow a path which leads her to the road of wellness. She also wants others to follow the same roads. Health, wellbeing and breast cancer are particularity the topics she prefer to write on. She always uses her pen to write the authentic and informative stuff. You can follow her on  twitter