Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a disorder in which a person loses touch with reality and finds it difficult to differentiate between what is real and what is constructed and imagined. The balance between neurotransmitters such as dopamine, serotonin, adrenaline and noradrenaline plays an important role in the development of schizophrenia.

Causes: stressful life event, heredity, childhood head injuries, complications during birth, a reaction to a virus, environmental poisons, drugs, copper toxicity, zinc deficiency and magnesium deficiency.

Symptoms: disordered thinking and speech, less emotional contact with others, lethargy, emotional changes (trauma, depression), behavioural changes (delusions, violent outbursts) and hallucinations.

 Who to consult: Dietician, GP, herbalist, homoeopath, naturopath, pharmacist, psychiatrist.