Why is schizophrenia interesting

An imbalance in neurotransmitters such as dopamine and glutamate might also make a person more susceptible to this mental health condition.

In addition, people with schizophrenia experience brain changes such as reduced gray matter. Gray matter is brain tissue that helps with processing information, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Finally, components like mind-altering drug use as a teenager or young adult, prenatal exposure to viruses that can affect brain development, prenatal malnutrition, and psychosocial factors meaning psychological and social issues such as childhood trauma can also play a role.

The takeaway: No single environmental or behavioral factor leads to schizophrenia. Of the 23 million or so people worldwide who have schizophrenia, the World Health Organization estimates that 12 million are men and 9 million are women. Experts aren't sure of exactly why this is, though they have some theories.

One is that higher levels of hormones such as estrogen in women may help prevent imbalances in neurotransmitters like dopamine and glutamate that are implicated in schizophrenia. There's also the idea that sex chromosomes may be a factor, though that's still up for debate.

Not only are men more likely than women to develop schizophrenia, but the two groups might also be more likely to develop the condition at different stages of life. For example, symptoms of schizophrenia generally emerge between the ages of 16 and 30, but they typically begin in the early to mids for men and the lates for women, according to the Mayo Clinic.

The later onset in women may be related to lower estrogen levels as women age. It also appears as though men and women can experience schizophrenia symptoms differently. For instance, men with schizophrenia tend to have more of those negative symptoms while women are more inclined to have mood-related symptoms, a paper in International Review of Psychiatry explains.

This may be due in part to neurotransmitters acting differently in people of different sexes. Masand notes. But this is about correlation, not causation: Having schizophrenia doesn't inherently make a person dangerous.

A study in Law and Human Behavior found that out of violent and non-violent crimes committed by people with mental illnesses, only 4 percent were directly related to schizophrenia-induced psychosis. Three percent were directly related to depression, and 10 percent to bipolar disorder.

Other elements—mainly general risk factors for crime, regardless of a person's mental health status—tended to weigh much more heavily, such as poverty, substance abuse, homelessness, and unemployment. While you may be familiar with the term schizophrenia, you may not be aware of what it actually is. While schizophrenia is a serious mental health condition, the majority of people with schizophrenia are no more dangerous than people without schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia is also a very treatable mental illness. In fact, with the right therapy and support systems, most people with schizophrenia can live independently, manage their symptoms, and enjoy a healthy life. Below is everything you need to know about schizophrenia, along with some interesting facts and statistics. It is also extremely rare, affecting less than one percent of the United States population.

Worldwide, the prevalence of schizophrenia is about the same, with roughly 20 million people diagnosed every year. Schizophrenia can affect anyone at any stage in life but is most commonly diagnosed between the ages of 18 and Other common symptoms of schizophrenia can include hallucinations, delusions, and cognitive issues such as difficulty completing tasks. However, having schizophrenia does not mean that a person is more violent or wants to harm people. In fact, individuals with schizophrenia are 14 times more likely to suffer violence than to inflict it on someone else.

Understanding the real schizophrenia facts is crucial to combatting mental health stigma and helping people get the care they need. Currently, there is no known cause of schizophrenia. Some scientists believe that schizophrenia may be the result of problems with brain chemistry and brain structure. These structural changes are thought to occur during fetal development, although they can occur at any time later in life. Other prevailing theories behind the cause of schizophrenia are genetics and family history.

Scientists believe that schizophrenia may be caused by a complex combination of genetics and environmental influences.

Some research has found that your likelihood of developing schizophrenia increases by up to six times if you have a close relative with the disorder. Researchers are also currently investigating other potential causes such as viral infections, brain damage from complications during birth, and substance use.

So on this matter, the exact schizophrenia facts remain unclear. Below are some interesting schizophrenia facts and statistics you should know.

Paranoid schizophrenia is the most common type of schizophrenia worldwide. People with disorganized schizophrenia often experience chaotic behavior or speech. Catatonic schizophrenia is a very rare subtype of schizophrenia. This is thanks, in part, to improved treatment methods. People with this type of schizophrenia will experience periods in which they flip between decreased and excessive motor activity.

This is just one reason why clinical trials, like the ones conducted at Meridien Research, are so important. It is not yet possible to predict who will develop schizophrenia through genetic testing, so clinical research will help narrow down which genetic combinations are most likely to cause the disorder.

A person might have genes that indicate they are likely to have schizophrenia at some point in their life, but their environment determines whether or not those genes are turned on. Childhood and adolescent risk factors include high stress, drug use, social isolation, living in an urban environment, abuse and head injuries.

Positive symptoms are behaviors not normally seen in healthy people. These include hallucinations, delusions, thought disorders — or unusual ways of thinking — and movement disorders, including repetitive motions or catatonia.

Negative symptoms, like reduced expressions of emotion flat affect , reduced feelings of pleasure in everyday life, reduced speaking and a difficulty starting and sustaining tasks, are disruptions to normal behavior and emotions.

Finally, cognitive symptoms can be difficult to identify or determine to be associated with schizophrenia. These include a poor ability to use information learned to make decisions, trouble focusing or paying attention and problems with working memory. They are actually much more likely to hurt themselves than others. Suicidal thoughts and behaviors are very common among people with schizophrenia.

Substance abuse increases the likelihood that people with the disorder will become violent or suicidal. Abusing drugs or alcohol can interfere with treatment for schizophrenia or cause individuals to be less likely to seek treatment for schizophrenia.

In particular, heavy marijuana use has been linked to a more severe and earlier onset of the disorder.