Last Updated on November 1, 2020 by The Health Master
CHANDIGARH: Scientists from National Institute of Mental Health and Neurological Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, said most of the researches at the institute have singled out stress as the leading cause of most diseases prevalent in the world at present. The scientists had come to Panjab University to participate in a conference on transitional neuroscience.
“People tend to blame a lot on their genetics. However, only 5% of the diseases are caused by genetics. The remaining 95% happen due to stress, lifestyle, food habits and so on,” said Dr B S Shankaranarayana Rao, professor of neurophysiology at NIMHANS.
He advised that in order to reduce stress, the professional problems should be dissociated from the family. “Quality time is important to a stress-free family,” he said.
Dr Laxmi T Rao, another professor of neurophysiology at NIMHANS, told the gathering about autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a childhood neurodevelopmental disorder with a range of symptoms related to social communication deficits and restricted stereotypical behaviour. She said that child abuse and insult lead to effective disorders in adulthood, giving symptoms of depression, anxiety and schizophrenia. “It is very important for working parents to train the next generation in a positive atmosphere, provide good nutrition, allow them to grow normally and channelise children into a focused life,” she said.
Dr K P Mohanakumar, the director at Inter University Centre for Biomedical Research and Super Specialty Hospital, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, Kerala, cited two successful stories from his laboratory on neurodegenerative disease research, with special attention to Parkinson’s disease. He said that the problem of the brain, which is developing very quickly these days, has to be identified at a young stage otherwise the child can develop autism. “The social system in India, which is now moving towards the nuclear family leaving the child alone with the maid, is leading to autism,” he maintained.
