Autism Spectrum Disorder or ASD is a condition associated with brain development. ASD affects the way an individual perceives others and socializes with a group of people. This disorder shows up in early childhood; it includes repetitive and limited behaviour patterns and thus, makes it difficult for the affected child to interact or communicate with others.

The word  spectrum  in ASD refers to a range of signs related to the condition. Some children develop the symptoms of the disorder right from infancy, while others exhibit the same within 12-36 months of birth.

Signs to Watch Out for-

Early signs of Autism Spectrum Disorder in toddlers include-

  Reduced eye contact
  Lack of response (to their name)
  Difficulty learning things
  Trouble communicating
  Speaking in an abnormal tone
  Repeating words, not knowing where to place them in a sentence
  Inability to express feelings/emotions
  Inappropriate approach to social interaction   being aggressive, destructive, or passive
  Difficulty recognizing non-verbal cues
  Lack of coordination
  Oversensitive to touch, sound, or light
  Repetitive movements - spinning, rocking, hand flapping

Every child with ASD has a unique behaviour pattern.

If you notice the above traits in your child and are concerned about his/her development, then you should visit a doctor right away. A specialist can recommend an appropriate line of treatment to manage the symptoms and help your child thrive despite being autistic.

Autism and Nutrition   Is There Really a Link?

Caring for an autistic child can be challenging on many levels, and healthful eating is no exception. A child living with Autism Spectrum Disorder may not be getting enough nutrients, primarily because they are not patient enough to sit through their meals.

If your child has ASD, you should definitely reach out to a paediatrician. He/she will most likely prescribe a  special diet  to provide your child with the essential nutrients.

  Switch to a casein-free, gluten-free diet. Exclude foods such as   fishes, eggs, seafood, soy products, nuts etc. Children with ASD have an abnormally leaky gut, and these food items often cause inflammation in the gut. This further deteriorates the symptoms.
  The doctor may recommend a low-fat, high-protein ketogenic diet   cottage cheese, avocados, poultry meat, coconut oil etc.
  Serve your child a good portion of vitamin-rich foods   cereals, fruit juice, oatmeal etc. However, make sure that you are aware of any allergic reaction your child may have before incorporating these in their diet.

Health experts state that for children living with this condition, a balanced, nutritious diet can make all the difference in the world   it can improve their learning ability, help them to express themselves more and process information better.

Early Signs Of ASD In Toddlers!

Autism in children is a condition that is characterized by limiting social intelligence, unequal skill development across sectors, and repetitive behavioural patterns. These children may show awkwardness when dealing or speaking with people, as they seem to fail to understand what other people feel. Hence, they are unable to deal out emotional responses in kind. They themselves are very troubled, sometimes, by stimuli that are considered normal by other people, including certain visions, touches, smells and sounds.

The skill set of an autistic child forms and develops unequally. While they are not very social, they sometimes gain intense intellectual abilities in the field of math, music, chess, art and related matters which require the brain to visualize and function.

There are further ways to diagnose underlying autism in a child, and diagnosis is extremely necessary for early treatment and cure. These warning signs are-

  An autistic child will shy away from both tactile and non-tactile contact. Some children may naturally be scared of being touched by a stranger, but autistic children will not even look or smile at you when you are feeding them. They cannot maintain eye contact, and neither will they show signs of affection like small smiles or cuddles, or loving glances.

  Lack of auditory communication - This is another area of communication where an autistic child will be found lacking. Even above and beyond not responding to visual and tactile stimuli, she/he will completely forego aural communication as well. They will not respond to familiar sounds around and go even to the extent of not recognizing or being able to respond to their own name.

  If you point at things in the distance, there is a lack of communication with your child as well. These children do not have the ability to maintain a connection long enough to follow your hand and record what it is gesturing at. Either the child does not feel enough of a connection to you to actually feel your stimulus worth pursuing, or she/he does not have the power or attention span to keep following with eyes the trail your fingers have created.

  The child does not use a lot of aural communication her/himself as well too. She/he does not call out often or call you by acronyms like mother and does not make small whimpering noises like most infants do, in search for some warmth and affection.

She/he does not seem to have a natural affinity for physical touch and love and does not seem to be able to show very much love her/himself through cuddles or disappointment expressed if you get sick.

Autism is a disease that has now spread to a whole range of behavioural peculiarities, termed collectively as the Autism Spectrum Disorder. If diagnosed sufficiently early, this condition can be helped to a great extent. Make sure to monitor your child for the above signs, and contact a doctor immediately if you see cause for concern.

The Ways You Can Identify An Autistic Child!

Causes and symptoms of Catatonic depression

Catatonic depression is a kind of depression which is characterized by prolonged periods of speechlessness and motionlessness. It is described as a state of mind that is caused by neurogenic and motor inabilities caused due to dysfunction of various neurotransmitters like glutamate and dopamine. People who suffer from a severe case of this condition, even have difficulty in performing simple regular tasks. For example, the act of eating breakfast may take a span of hours.

Some of the common symptoms of this condition are:

- Feelings of sadness
- A change in appetite causing gain or loss of weight
- Difficulty in concentrating and thinking
- Feelings of restlessness, worthlessness, and guilt
- Fatigue
- Irritability
- A loss of interest in any activity
- Trouble sleeping
- Attempts at suicide
- Cynicism and negativism
- Agitation
- Unusual and abnormal movements
- An inability to move and difficulty in speaking
- A refusal to eat or drink due to extreme anxiety

The major causes of catatonic depression are:

1. Abnormal neurotransmitter production

Irregularities in the production of neurotransmitters are believed to be one of the major causative factors of this type of depression. These neurotransmitters present in the brain help cells to communicate with each other. Serotonin and norepinephrine are the neurotransmitters which are mostly associated with this type of depression.

2. Dopamine irregularities

Another reason for this condition is believed to be the irregularities in dopamine, glutamate, and gamma-aminobutyric acid neurotransmitter systems. Underlying neurological, physical, psychiatric or psychological conditions are accompanying issues.

Administering antidepressants or using electroconvulsive therapy are some of the known ways of treatment which have proved effective for getting relief from catatonic depression.



What Makes Catatonic Depression so Impairing?

A bad habit could range from smoking or drinking to knuckle breaking or nail biting. A bad habit is one that causes or is likely to cause you or the others in your life, harm. Here are eight steps that can help you break your bad habit:

Try to understand your habit: The most important thing to break a bad habit is to know it first. In case that some habit is hurting you then you certainly need to let go of it. You initially need to set your mind about bringing an end to that habit. It is also important to understand how this habit of yours is hurting you or the ones around you.
Change your thinking: Even when we get to know we have some unfortunate habit, more often than not we are not prepared to separate it since we have practised that habit since a long time and it is by all accounts intense to break that one. We have to change our reasoning about the habit and take a look at it in negative viewpoints since a thing having negative perspectives will be simpler to quit.
Begin small: In case that you have a negative behaviour pattern since quite a while then go slow to break it down in light of the fact that a bad habit is hard to separate at once. Try not to attempt to do everything at once since you would not have the capacity to do as such.
Make tiny improvements: Try not to make extreme improvements to your habit since it is your habit and it will some way or another takes its time to break. Rather make little improvements with the goal that it will not aggravate you and soon you will encounter a noteworthy change in your behaviour and afterwards you will separate the habit totally on a more lasting basis.
Change your environment: A few habits are built because of the environment we live in. The steady surrounding makes us construct that habit in a manner that it gets stronger day by day. So in case that you understand that some negative behaviour patterns have overtaken your life and are not going down, attempt to change your surroundings.
Keep a check: Simply going ahead to bring an end to any habit will not give you appropriate results. Keeping a survey helps you in checking on how much of your bad habit you have defeated and how far you are from breaking it completely.
Reward yourself: Offer yourself a reward each time you see that you have stopped behaving in a certain way, or practising a certain habit. This goes a long way in motivating the individual to strive towards that end goal of breaking the habit completely.

Want to Break a Bad Habit - 7 Steps You Must Follow!

Drug addiction is one of the social menaces and in most people, what starts off as a result of peer pressure and trying to be cool ends up affecting lives significantly. It is not just social, but also affects financial, physical, emotional, and social well-being. The small periods of happiness given by the drug is followed by months and years of torment.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has identified that drug addiction causes chemical and structural changes in the brain, leading to dangerous and self-destructive behaviours. The brain s response to stimulus like pleasure, joy, happiness, and pain are altered with constant drug abuse. For instance, the neurotransmitter called dopamine, which makes one feel good, is usually produced by the brain in small amounts. However, drugs increase this level to 2 to 10 times more, making the person feel extremely high and happy. Since the body is unable to reach the highest level of happiness on its own, the dependency on these drugs to feel good increases.

Repeated use of the drugs leads to increased dependency, wherein the brain refuses to feel good without reaching those high levels of dopamine. The issue is mostly seen in teenagers and young adults but can be seen in any age group.

October 2 is recognised as National Anti-Drug Addiction Day and nationwide campaigns and drives are done to help people overcome addiction. One of the main reasons a drive this size is required is because of the social stigma attached to the problem. Most families shun away from recognising it as a problem that can be easily treated, and so the affected person is sucked deeper into the problem.

Overcoming addiction: One of the main success factors for treating addiction is for the affected person to recognise that he or she is addicted and needs to get rid of the problem.

    There are national toll-free helplines that are set up, which can guide through the whole program. This way, if required, anonymity is maintained and support for overcoming addiction is increased.
    It involves a group effort involving the affected person, family and friends, medical and clinical personnel, and counsellors in some cases.
    Cognitive behavioural therapy: The person is made conscious of the change in behaviour and the way drugs affect it. Healthier patterns to be happy and joyful are discussed.
    In most cases, the underlying reason for reaching out to drugs needs to be addressed also to prevent relapse.
    Group therapies where the person makes friends who have faced similar issues and overcome the problem. This increases their accountability and commitment to getting rid of the problem.

Drug abuse is a national social menace and needs more free admittance and management.

National Anti-Drug Addiction Day - Overcoming Addiction

Alzheimer's disease is a dynamic disease that causes loss of memory and other vital mental functions. To start with, someone with Alzheimer's disease may witness light confusion in the beginning and trouble recalling. In the long run, individuals with the disease may even overlook important individuals in their lives and experience emotional identity changes.

Dementia: Alzheimer s disease is the most widely recognised reason for dementia   a gathering of brain issues that causes the loss of intellectual and social abilities. In Alzheimer's disease, the brain cells deteriorate and die, bringing on an enduring decrease in memory and mental capacity.
Brain Cells: Despite the fact that the reasons for Alzheimer's is not yet completely comprehended, its impact on the brain is clear. Alzheimer's disease harms the brain cells. A mind influenced by Alzheimer's has fewer cells and fewer associations among surviving cells than a solid mind.
Brain Shrinkage: As more brain cells start to die, Alzheimer's prompts critical brain shrinkage. At the point when specialists inspect Alzheimer's brain tissue under the magnifying instrument, they see two sorts of irregularities that are considered to cause Alzheimer s. These are:
Plaque: These clusters of a protein called beta-amyloid may harm and crush brain cells in a few ways, meddling with cell-to-cell functioning. In spite of the fact that a definitive reason for brain cell passing in Alzheimer's is not known, the accumulation of beta-amyloid on the outside of brain cells is a prime reason.
Tangles: Brain cells rely upon an inner support and transport framework to carry the supplements and other fundamental materials through their long extensions. This framework requires the typical structure and working of a protein called tau. In Alzheimer's, strings of tau protein turn into strange tangles inside the brain cells. This may also cause the decrease of brain cells. 
Here are some more causes that can lead to this disease:

Age: Age is a most critical cause in the development of Alzheimer's disease. The probability of building up the condition increases after you reach sixty-five years of age.
Family history: The qualities you acquire from your parents can add to your danger of building up Alzheimer's infection. This may also contribute to the environmental factors which can cause this condition. In some families, a single gene creates Alzheimer s disease and the dangers of the condition being passed on are much higher.
Head injuries: Individuals who have had serious head damage have been observed to be at higher risk of building up Alzheimer's disease.
Cardiovascular diseases: Research demonstrates that few lifestyle components and conditions connected with cardiovascular disease can build the danger of Alzheimer's disease. These include smoking, obesity, diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol.


Alzheimer's Disease - Reasons That Can Lead To It!

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