 Illustration by Charlize Nishitoyo Have you ever gotten the late night cravings and found yourself regrettably stumbling around JJ’s place at 2 am? If you have, you might find solace in the fact that your yearning for greasy food isn’t completely dependent on your conscious decisions. In fact, there is actually an intricate communication network between your brain and gut biome that can impact your cognitive functions and emotions.
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Alzheimer’s Disease, a type of dementia, affects more than 24 million people worldwide, and its epidemiology can be traced back to as early as 600 CE. The disease is often described as a living death — memories fade to black, the brain fails to retain information, mood swings set in, and appetite dwindles. While a person suffering from Alzheimer’s is living, in real-time, the brain’s hard drive is erasing itself. Since its first documentation, the disease has been widely misunderstood: societies in the Middle Ages perceived Alzheimer’s as a punishment for the patient’s sins. Similar stigmatization of the disease is evident throughout history as seen in “A history of Alzheimer’s.” It describes how patients with Alzheimer’s “were representative victims of a witch hunt that was widespread over the 14th and 15th centuries.” This demonized Alzheimer’s till the 1800s, when research on the disease began. It wasn’t until 1910 that Alzheimer’s Disease received the name the world now recognizes.
Taking out our phones and spending a few minutes scrolling through an endless sea of content before bed has become a habitual part of many of our lives. This act not only puts stress on our sleep schedules, but also impacts our overall quality of sleep. Experts recommend not looking at blue light sources, such as cell phones, for at least an hour before going to bed. Blue light is similar to the natural light produced by the sun, which can confuse our circadian rhythm and disrupt our melatonin product. Since melatonin controls the REM cycles of sleep, scrolling through our phones before bed can make us feel wide awake despite our body needing rest. Yet despite the widespread teaching of these negative health impacts, actually putting down the phone before bed can be a challenge.
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