New Delhi: World Schizophrenia Day is celebrated every year on 24 May all over the world. Women, men or people of any age can suffer from this mental illness. People suffering from this remain happy in their own world and isolate themselves from others.
Symptoms usually start appearing in adolescence, such as lack of interest in studies, irritability, sleep problems, loneliness, laughing or crying, not paying attention to anything, etc.
In such a situation, the patient becomes unable to take care of himself and needs the support of family and society. For this purpose, World Schizophrenia Day is celebrated every year to increase awareness among people. In this article, with the help of experts, we will know what are the reasons that increase the risk of schizophrenia.
What is schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia is a serious mental disorder, sometimes a person spends his entire life battling with it. The person suffering from this considers his imagination as reality and often remains in a state of confusion. If we understand in simple words, there is a neurotransmitter called dopamine in our brain, which works to create harmony between the brain and the body, but when the amount of dopamine increases due to some reason, it is called schizophrenia.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 1 percent of the world's population suffers from schizophrenia, while in India the number of patients suffering from this disease is close to 4 million.
What do the experts say?
To know more about this, we had a special conversation with Dr. Jyoti Kapoor, Founder-Director and Senior Psychiatrist of Manasthali.
“Poor lifestyle and lack of adequate nutrition can also increase the risk of schizophrenia,” says Dr. Jyoti Kapoor. “People who suffer from unhealthy habits such as poor diet, lack of exercise, substance abuse and insufficient sleep are at increased risk of developing other mental health problems, including schizophrenia.”
Dr. Jyoti said, “Nutrient deficiencies, especially of essential fatty acids, vitamins and minerals, can impair brain function and increase the genetic predisposition to schizophrenia.” In addition, chronic stress and poor lifestyle behaviors can lead to neuroinflammation and disruption of neurotransmitters, which play a key role in the occurrence of this disease. So let us pledge on World Schizophrenia Day to eat a balanced diet, exercise regularly, get adequate sleep and reduce stress and improve mental health.