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Head Injuries and Genetic Changes

Your health can be affected by head injuriesAnyone who is familiar with head injuries will be well aware of the physical, neurological, and behavioral changes that occur. However, a recent scientific study suggests some equally serious and not immediately obvious—but nonetheless harmful—changes that may occur in relation to certain genes and their expression.

Changes in Genes as a Result of Head Injuries

Scientists have discovered that the risk of developing a brain disorder, such as autism or Alzheimer’s, significantly increases following head injuries. The mechanism behind this increased risk may be related to the damage caused to a number of genes as a result of these injuries. These altered genes have also been associated with in increased risk of post-traumatic stress disorder.

The damaged genes produce irregular proteins thereby increasing your risk of brain disorders. However, the same study led scientists to discover a set of master genes that may show promise as part of future therapies to reverse the effects brain damage.

The genes found to be altered by head injuries include those governing inflammation, cell communication, and metabolism. Thus, discovering these genes may help to provide more effective ways of remediating many chronic brain disorders. These new potential remediation efforts are centered around making changes to the master genes in order to elicit changes in the secondary genes that influence brain disorders.

A similar study showed that DHA—one of the omega-3 fatty acids—can reverse damage to hundreds of different genes. Since particular genes have the ability to encode or “create” certain types of protein, changes in the master genes as a result of severe head injuries can have significant effects on protein production. Gene alterations may cause cells to express patterns of genes encoding for proteins differently leading to abnormal protein production. In this way, genes that don’t function properly may lead to brain disorders.

Age and Severity of Injury

Your age and how severe your head injuries are may be strong determinants of whether your injuries will lead to a brain disorder. If you’re over 55 and/or the injury is severe, your risk of developing a brain disorder is higher. Also, if you have a series of minor head injuries, the accumulation of changes caused by each injury may lead to cognitive difficulties in the future.

If you have other risk factors associated with developing brain disorders, such as the presence of the apoE gene—linked to Alzheimer’s disease—the likelihood of a head injury leading to a brain disorder is again higher.

Head Injuries and Hormonal Glands

How hormones are impacted by head injuriesA significant amount of evidence suggests that the pituitary gland, which is located in the brain, is particularly susceptible to harm from head injuries. If your pituitary gland is damaged due to this type of injury, your potential for developing significant problems increases. Moderate to severe injuries of the pituitary gland can lead to hormonal changes and mental health issues.

Another serious condition that may occur following head injuries is cranial diabetes insipidus. It’s important to pay attention to the typical signs and symptoms of diabetes, such as polydipsia (drinking a lot of water) or polyuria (producing a large amount of urine accompanied by frequent urination), following this type of injury.

Head Injuries and Your Gut

The connection between your brain and gut is supported by a huge amount of research. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that some people experience gut issues following a head injury. In fact, many scientists now consider the gut to be the “second brain” because of the numerous neurotransmitter precursors made in the gastro-intestinal (GI) tract.

The fragile network responsible for communicating between your gut and brain may be disrupted by head injuries and the result may be intestinal dysfunction, ongoing pain, and even disability.

Autonomic dysregulation may occur, whereby the autonomic nervous system can no longer regulate the functions of your body, including gut motility which controls the movement of food through your digestive tract. One potential consequence is a continuous cycle of chronic pain that is hard to disrupt.

Moreover, when head injuries interrupt the communication system between your brain and gut, your visceral sensing can potentially be affected. This prevents your gut from telling your brain what’s going on down there and may result in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Or yet another consequence of head injuries is the condition known as leaky gut syndrome . With this condition, the tight junctions between neighboring cells of your gut lining become loose, allowing foreign particles to pass into your bloodstream, thus triggering your immune system, and may even lead to autoimmune conditions of various sorts, as well as inflammation throughout your body.

Significant changes in the health of the mucosal lining of your gut can occur within a very short time after head injuries.

Following head injuries, the blood-brain barrier—a semipermeable barrier composed of cells that protects your brain by allowing only certain elements to pass while preventing the passage of potential neurotoxins and other foreign materials—may be more prone to breaking down. This can lead to inflammation of your brain.

This type of injury can also cause dysfunction of your brain’s immune system. When the brain is injured and no longer able to control the immune system, the result can be either an under- or over-stimulated immune system. The former means your immune system is unable to keep you safe from foreign invaders, such as bacteria and viruses. Whereas the latter can lead to the development equally detrimental autoimmune conditions in which your body begins to attack itself.

Changes in gut motility may also occur following head injuries leading to stagnation and a buildup of toxins due to food trapped inside your gut since it can no longer effectively pass food and waste out of your body.

Head Injuries and Adrenal Fatigue

Head injuries and adrenal fatigueResults of this research relating head injuries and abnormal gene expression also presents a potential avenue for remediating the symptoms of Adrenal Fatigue Syndrome (AFS) . Adrenal Fatigue is a condition that can occur when your body is continuously bombarded by stress. To fight the effects of stress, your adrenal glands—part of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis—secrete cortisol. However, unrelenting stress may eventually cause your adrenals to become fatigued and unable to produce sufficient amounts of cortisol. This can trigger a series of symptoms associated with Adrenal Fatigue and although the symptoms of AFS start out as small annoyances, they can eventually become debilitating.

Many of the symptoms associated with head injuries are also common symptoms of Adrenal Fatigue. Therefore, any potential master gene therapies used to improve the symptoms of brain injuries may also show promise in remediating the symptoms of Adrenal Fatigue.
Conventionally trained physicians are typically not trained to assess or treat Adrenal Fatigue at the root cause of the condition, and instead tend to treat each symptom in isolation. The NeuroEndoMetabolic (NEM) stress response The neuro-affective circuit is most affected by head injuries since it involves the neurotransmitters of your brain. Neurotransmitters are chemical messengers that enable communication between neurons of your brain, thereby controlling all the functions of your body. Therefore, any changes in your neurotransmitters will be felt all over your body.

Research has shown that any disruption, imbalance, or deficiency in neurotransmitters can be the root cause of numerous health conditions. This is because alterations in these chemical messengers may prevent your body and brain from effectively communicating.
The enteric nervous system is located in your digestive system and uses more than 30 neurotransmitters. In addition, approximately 95% of total serotonin in your body can be found in your gut. The gut also contains some 100 million neurons, which is more than in your spinal cord or peripheral nervous system.

Neurotransmitters are produced by cells lining your gut as well as bacteria present within your gut. With head injuries, your gut lining may be disrupted leading to an imbalance of your gut bacteria . Viewing head injuries from this perspective makes it easy to see how they can have drastic effects on your entire body.

Ways to Replenish Neurotransmitters Naturally

Using supplements to prevent damage from head injuriesTaking B vitamins may help you replenish your neurotransmitters. In addition, S-Adenosyl-L-methionine (SAMe), methionine, and vitamin B12 are excellent supplements that can aid in the methylation of melatonin and catecholamines (important neurotransmitters). Supplementing with B vitamins must only ever match your body’s needs since they are extremely potent in their active forms and consuming too much vitamin B could, in fact, lead to adrenal crashes. There are a number of side effects to be aware of as well, including insomnia, anxiety, and heart palpitations.

Serotonin itself doesn’t cross the blood-brain barrier and therefore should not be taken orally. However, to increase the level of serotonin in your brain, 5-Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP)—a precursor to serotonin—can be taken orally. It’s recommended that you start with a very low dose and gradually work your way up since high doses may cause nausea and stomach cramps.

Balanced levels of GABA and glutamate are also necessary for the neurons in your brain to function properly. However, be extremely careful if you decide to take either of these as supplements. It’s best to consult a knowledgeable healthcare practitioner first.

Conclusion

Head injuries are significant traumatic events that may have additional negative consequences than what was previously thought. Recent research has shown your genes can be damaged by traumatic brain injury, which could lead to various chronic illnesses later in life.

© Copyright 2019 Michael Lam, M.D. All Rights Reserved.

Dr. Lam’s Key Question

New research has shown that head injuries can lead to genetic damage. This type of damage may alter gene expression resulting in the production of irregular proteins—your body’s building blocks. Thus, head injuries may alter the effects of your genes significantly.

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