The Brain and the Central Nervous System

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The brain is perhaps the body's greatest mystery. It is enormously complex and it controls so much—yet we know so little about it. Despite years of research, we also know precious little about medicines used to treat the brain and nervous system—mostly, we can only observe the effects of such drugs as aspirin and Prozac and wonder how they work. Similarly, herbs for the brain and nervous system are shrouded in mystery.

The brain is only part of the central nervous system, which also includes the spinal cord and the peripheral nerves. This system is responsible for conveying information from the outside world to you and relaying messages from one part of your body to another. This is a big job, which is done mostly by chemicals called neurotransmitters, or "nerve transmitters." These transmitters carry messages to nerve cells called neurons and help these messages jump their signals from cell to cell across narrow gaps called synapses. Your brain's cerebral cortex alone—the part of the brain that is responsible for coordinating higher nervous activity—contains about 50 billion of these nerve cells.

There are many different types of neurotransmitters. If you end up with too much or not enough of a particular transmitter, the chemistry of your brain can be disrupted, and this will affect not only your mental functioning but also your emotional balance—indeed, your entire body may be affected. For example, one particular neurotransmitter, serotonin, is important because it promotes sleep, lowers pain sensitivity, hinders aggression and acts as an antidepressant. All sorts of problems, ranging from prolonged stress to inflammatory bowel diseases, can alter the levels of accessible neurotransmitters.

The central nervous system controls many functions, so problems with it can lead to a number of different conditions, including headaches, depression and pain. Fortunately, herbs, and even aromatherapy, can hasten healing in many central nervous system conditions. While natural treatments do not take the place of professional counseling or medical treatments in overcoming addictions or serious depression, they certainly can be good allies.

The herbs mentioned in this section come from all over the world. Although some of these plants have unusual names, all of them are available in natural food stores. You will find them sold separately or in combinations designed to help various nervous system disorders. Also, be sure to check out chapters 111 through 116, where I discuss aromatherapy techniques and cover the specific fragrances used to treat depression, anxiety, insomnia and stress.

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