Rise in youth hyperactivity prescriptions

Extract from the Independent:

The number of prescriptions for drugs to treat hyperactivity in children is on the rise, figures suggested today.

…Data obtained by the Conservatives found more than 420,000 prescriptions were written for under-16s in 2007 – up 33 per cent on 2005 figures. More than 40,000 prescriptions were also written for 16 to 18 year-olds, up 51 per cent since 2005.

In 2007, the NHS spent more than £17 million on the drugs….

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Effect of brainwaves on movement and peak performance

This scientific study proves and reinforces one of the training objectives in our Peak Performance for Sport training course:- the importance of being able to control beta brainwave production.  Note especially the sentence I have highlighted and put in bold text.

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Study highlights effect of brain waves on human behaviour

Boosting a certain type of brain wave can slow people’s movements, UK researchers have discovered. The findings, published online by the journal Current Biology, offer the first direct evidence that brain waves can influence behaviour in otherwise healthy individuals. They could also lead to the development of new drugs for medical conditions characterised by either uncontrolled or slowed movements.

Different types of brain wave have different frequencies and different locations. In this study, the researchers investigated beta waves, which have a frequency of around 20 Hertz (Hz). Earlier studies have shown that beta waves are linked to sustained muscle activity, such as that employed when holding a book. Beta activity drops just before people initiate movement.

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study shows exercise improves brain power

Physical exercise is usually associated with improved physical fitness.  However now there is proof that exercise will improve your mental fitness as well.

A recent study at the University of Calgary has show that those people who participate in light exercise are mentally fitter than those who do not exercise. The study was published in the journal, “Neurobiology of Aging”, and finds that physical fitness helps improve brain function because physical exercise benefits blood flow in the brain and, as a result, aids cognitive abilities.

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Right Brain vs. Left Brain

Last week I received an email with a so-called brain test. The sender wanted to know why the brain reacted in the way described in the test. Attached to the email was a computer generated back and white image of a female dancer.

By coincidence, I came across the same image in an online news article today, so perhaps this is now going round the internet. Have a look at the image for yourself here.

When you first look at the image, which way round did the dance appear to be turning? Are you able to get it to change direction? With a few minutes practice you should be able to control the direction she turns.

But how does this effect occur? Is it really a right vs. left brain issue, as suggested in the article? Unfortunately no sources for their claim on this are mentioned.

My opinion is that it is more to do with how to brain interprets visual input, rather than left / right brain. With this image it is a flat two tone picture. There is little reference point of perspective for the brain to use.

If you create your own reference point in your imagination, such as thinking whether the girls hair is towards you or away from you as she turns. The same can be done with her foot and if it is towards you or away from you. As there is not possible to know this, by using your imagination and telling your brain this is what you see, your brain will create the image and perception to what you believe in this moment. A classic optical illusion.

In our training courses we measure brainwave activity to compare left hemisphere brainwave activity with the right hemisphere. It is possible to measure the amplitude of activity and thus which side is more active. Where optimal levels of performance are achieved, be that in a sport or other activity, a balance of brainwave activity is seen. Conversely, we often notice that those who struggle to perform well, especially in academic skills, that they have a significant imbalance of brainwave activity.

There are other images, like this dancer, where your brain has to fill in the gaps of information it cannot see. Have you seen the drawing of the cube and you have to work out if the corner is towards you or away from you? You can see that and other illusions here.

The brain is a very clever piece of kit. If it is not sure as to what it sees, it creates that impression. This might include the child’s imagination that they see the shape of monsters in their bedroom, when it is just how the moonlight falls on a pile of clothes.

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Study skills and brainwaves

Today I found an interesting video on the BBC news website. It is a news item looking at a new teaching style – a brain friendly style.

This incorporates short bursts of learning followed by some physical activity. It also discusses the importance of understanding of brainwave activity.

All of this is exciting as it is exactly what I have been teaching to my clients looking to improve their study skills. Periods of learning should be split into smaller blocks. School classes typically last for 40 – 50 minutes. However younger students cannot concentrate for this length of time.

By adding a period of physical activity, this increases blood flow and oxygen to the brain; essential for laying down the information into neural pathways.

Whilst the study of brainwave activity is mentioned, there is no specific mention of the different levels essential to learning.

Have a look at the news report here. It is great to see this subject, which was previously seen as being very “alternative”, becoming much more accepted and mainstream.

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