Myomancy ADHD, Dyslexia and Autism

Our brains are complicated electrical circuits, tightly interwoven and overlapping. The neurons are the wires of this circuit, carrying the electrical charges. Around the neurons is myelin, a protective substance that insulates the neuron making sure the electrical signal is carried quickly to its destination. Dr Bartzokis from the University of California has been researching how our myelin forms and changes during our lifetimes.
In a paper due to be published in the journal Adolescent Psychiatry, Dr Bartzokis reports that the process of myelination starts in childhood and continues until our forties when it begins to decline. Illness, pollution, poor diet and other reasons can interrupt the myelination process and this leads to inefficient neurons that leak or lose signals. Based on these findings Dr Bartzokis is suggesting that problems in myelination made be important in many brain disorders. Poor myelination in childhood might causes autism, problems in teenage years might effect the development of schizophrenia and in adulthood, Alzheimer’s disease. This is all very speculative but it does suggest possible new treatments that promote or repair myelin.
The study has not been published but you can read the UCLA press release or the coverage on Newsday.