Saturday 3 July 2021 • Promotional Content BRAIN-BODY LINK


In a region of the brain behind the nose, a small organ called the pituitary gland, acts as a control unit for the mind-body interaction. The pituitary gland receives stimuli from that part of the brain called the limbic system, which processes and stores memory, emotions and social behaviour. It also receives body stimuli of varying nature ranging from the body temperature to sexual stimulation and stress. The pituitary gland is filled with hormones that are released directly into the blood stream. These hormones reach several glands in the body and regulate their activity. In return, the body’s glands produce hormones and other substances that provide feedback stimuli to the pituitary gland. These hormonal loops help our body adjust to external and the internal conditions through a finely tuned regulation of the body temperature, hunger, thirst, sexual activity, blood pressure, endocrine functions and emotional behaviour. Understanding this brain-body link offers new opportunities ical, psychological and physical


for pharmacolog- interventions in


mental health, says Professor Catani who works with Pierpaolo Impullitti, fitness, nutrition and weight management


specialist. Together,


they’ve developed the integrated treatment of training programmes for specific mental health conditions. In the most difficult cases, advanced MRI techniques such as Diffusion Imaging Tractography can be used to visualise connections of the limbic system in the human brain (an example of the reconstruction of the limbic networks is shown in the upper image) and help to iden- tify targets for neuromodulation in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy, depression and obses- sive compulsive disorders. (modi- fied from Catani & Thiebaut de Schotten, Atlas of human brain connections, Oxford University Press, 2012 and from Catani & Sandrone,


Brain renaissance, Oxford University Press, 2015)


Specialist clinics Healthcare Innovations 29


an underlying neurodevelopmental condition linked to their mental health difficulties. Teir correct assessment and diagnosis can lead to treatment targeting the root of the problem and avoid unnecessary therapies.” Tose who have studied the neuro-


Catani specialises in attention deficit hyper- activity disorder (ADHD)


and autism spectrum disorder


(ASD) in adults. “Tese conditions, which go under the umbrella term ‘neurodiversity’, are highly hereditary but often are not recognised in child- hood,” explains Professor Catani, “and they continue to cause problems in adult life.” “In my experience, it isn’t


uncommon to meet people with recurrent depression, anxiety and eating disorders who aren’t aware of


biology of neurodevelopmental condi- tions believe that important lessons are to be learned from neurodiversity, which could benefit the population at large. “ADHD, for example, is character-


ised by an impaired dopamine metab- olism. Release of dopamine in the brain makes us stay focused and calm”, says Professor Catani. “However, those who can’t release enough dopamine rely instead upon adrenaline, which also helps concentration but makes people feel anxious and tense. In the long term, prolonged high levels of adren- aline can affect the immune system,


body metabolism and brain func- tion, and may predispose to frequent infections, cancer and mental disor- ders. People often self-medicate with comfort food, alcohol, sedatives and other drugs. Explaining these mech- anisms is key in the delivery of effec- tive integrated approaches where the boosting of brain dopamine with stimulant medication should always be accompanied by the modification of long-term habits responsible for high adrenaline.” Chronic high levels of


adrena-


line and cortisol aren’t only found in ADHD patients but are also the hallmark of ‘stress’, a condi- tion linked to the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in western


societies. “Helping people rebal- ance their hormonal system is one of the important targets of modern preventive medicine”, says Dr Yassine Bendiabdallah,


functional


medicine specialist and expert in bio-identical hormone therapy. “If we consider aging as a natural process that can be greatly affected by how we treat our body and brain, anti-ageing medicine could play a big role in reshaping health poli- cies at a national and global level,” he concludes. Paradoxically, the future of psychi-


atry actually lies in the pioneering findings of the Peckham Experiment, which has found that the foundation of health and wellbeing is in health


REFERENCES 1. THEPHF.ORG/PECKHAMEXPERIMENT 2. RABIN JS, KLEIN H, KIRN DR, ET AL. ASSOCIATIONS OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND B-AMYLOID WITH LONGITUDINAL COGNITION AND NEURODEGENERATION IN CLINICALLY NORMAL OLDER ADULTS. JAMA NEUROL. 2019;76(10):1203–1210.


3. YANG AC, KERN F, LOSADA PM, ET AL. DYSREGULATION OF BRAIN AND CHOROID PLEXUS CELL TYPES IN SEVERE COVID-19. NATURE. 2021; DOI.ORG/10.1038/S41586-021-03710-0


promotion and health education, physical training, sports, nutrition, child development, community devel- opment, social cohesion and diversity. Building on this foundation and


with the correct use of digital inno- vations, telemedicine, and advanced neuroimaging technologies, psychia- trists now have a unique opportunity to deliver worldwide personalised and comprehensive mental health care.


For further information, contact E: reception@cataniclinic.com or visit cataniclinic.com


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44