Cardio Helps Those with Schizophrenia
The National Alliance on Mental Illness defines schizophrenia as “a serious mental illness that interferes with a person’s ability to think clearly, manage emotions, make decisions and relate to others. It is a complex, long-term medical illness, affecting about 1% of Americans.” Many people who suffer from schizophrenia have cognition issues where they find it difficult to gather their thoughts and express them, difficulty with memory, loss of concentration, as well as difficulty with completing tasks. Hallucinations and delusions are also very real symptoms of this illness. While living with schizophrenia is doable, a new study is showing cardiovascular exercise may lessen the symptoms associated with this disease.
Do You Suffer from Schizophrenia
There are several causes that are directly correlated to schizophrenia such as substance use/abuse, change in brain chemistry, environmental changes, as well as genetics. The treatment for those suffering from schizophrenia is often through anti-psychotic medication and psychotherapy. In general, the hallucinations and delusions often plaguing those suffering from the illness can be controlled by medication, but the cognition piece is still left untreated. This still leaves them with poor memory, lack of concentration, and loss of other cognitive functioning. But now the University of Manchester has found a way to allow those who suffer from this disease some relief.
One researcher was quoted saying, “Cognitive deficits are one aspect of schizophrenia which is particularly problematic. They hinder recovery and impact negatively upon people’s ability to function in work and social situations. Furthermore, current medications for schizophrenia do not treat the cognitive deficits of the disorder. We are searching for new ways to treat these aspects of the illness, and now research is increasingly suggesting that physical exercise can provide a solution.”
Information was gathered from 385 individuals with schizophrenia from 10 different independent clinical trials. What they found was that including aerobic activity as part of a schizophrenic’s treatment improved overall brain functioning more so than with medication alone.
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