Nicole Yeung
While standing at the base of a hill, a professor from the University of Virginia asked their students to estimate the height of the slope. When comparing the data, the professor discovered that the students who were with their friends gave low estimates while the students by themselves gave high estimates. In the end, the hill’s height did not change, but the community around the students changed their mindsets and perception.
As we connect with humans everyday, we depend on each other to survive. So, how do our communities influence our brains? If we have a socially-active community, does it help our minds develop and learn to grow?
The Community’s Effect on Myelin
Researchers from the Children’s National Health System state that environmental stimuli contribute to the brain’s development. In fact, a positive environment such as exposure to social interaction and new experiences strengthen the development of myelin, a fatty insulation in the brain.
Also known as myelin sheaths, myelin protects the brain’s axons from injuries and encourages faster nerve transmissions. As shown in the diagram below from Psychology Today, myelin sheaths coat the axons throughout the nervous system.
Parts of the nervous system including myelin and nerve fibers make up the brain’s white matter. As a matter of fact, myelin gives white matter its color.
Glucocorticoid and the Hippocampus
As supported by several studies, people who have stronger social connections tend to live longer and experience a better quality of life. This means that those who undergo isolation likely deal with poorer health conditions.
People who cave into chronic isolation and stress may end up with an overproduction of neurochemicals called glucocorticoids. This condition can speed up the degeneration of the hippocampus (a part of the brain’s limbic system involved with memories and learning), which may lead to an increased risk of dementia.
This diagram from the University of Sydney identifies the location of the hippocampus in the brain as well as surrounding components: the frontal cortex and amygdala.
What Creates a Successful Community?
A non-discriminatory place where people participate in physical exercises and promote support means there is always room for continuous active learning. Activities including family games and environmental factors such as clean air are both aspects that build up a successful community.
Conclusion
Being a social species, we rely on one another to develop our mental and social skills. It has been long encouraged that humans as young as infants are to be exposed to new sensory experiences so they can strengthen their brains and foster smoothly-running neural networks.
References
- Freeman, Katie. “Social Connection and Brain Health.” UW Medicine / Memory and Brain Wellness Center. https://depts.washington.edu/mbwc/news/article/social-connection-and-brain-health
- “How the environment helps to shape the brain.” Innovation District. https://innovationdistrict.childrensnational.org/environment-helps-shape-brain/
- “Community is Not Cancelled: Why Your Brain Needs Community.” Mindful Matters. https://www.mindfulnessmatters.ca/post/community-is-not-cancelled-why-your-brain-needs-community
- “White matter of the brain.” MedlinePlus. https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/002344.htm#:~:text=White%20matter%20is%20found%20in,the%20white%20matter%20its%20color
- “What Is Myelin?” National Multiple Sclerosis Society. https://www.nationalmssociety.org/What-is-MS/Definition-of-MS/Myelin#:~:text=The%20coating%20of%20myelin%20around,slowly%20or%20be%20blocked%20completely
Leave a Reply