The brain is a complex mass of tissue, nerves, fat cells, lobes, glands et cetera. These structures give the brain its form. When the structures work together, they give the brain its function. The brain and the spinal cord make the central nervous system. Fundamentally, the brain is responsible for all bodily functions.
The brain is primarily made of three parts; the cerebrum, the cerebellum, and the brain stem. The cerebrum is made up of the right and the left hemisphere. The two hemispheres have some shared functions and independent functions. The left side generally controls learning while the right one controls creativity and finer skills (Bansal, Nakuci & Muldoon, 2018). The surface of the cerebrum is called the cortex. It is a mass of billions of neurons. These neurons connect with nerve fibers (axons) which transmit information to other parts of the brain. The cerebrum is also divided into four lobes; the frontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal and they each perform specific functions of the cerebrum.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
The cerebellum is responsible for motor control. The brain stem is the relay center between the cerebrum, the cerebellum, and the spine. The stem controls involuntary functions such as breathing, heart rate, coughing, and sleep cycles. One part cannot function without the other. For instance, if the cerebellum was unable to control muscular movement, the heart would fail and the brain stem would be unable to control heart rate.
The brain also has hollow cavities called ventricles. The ventricles are filled with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), which cushion the brain from injury. It also supplies nutrients to the nervous system and removes waste products from the brain to avoid dysfunction and infections.
The Central Nervous System
The brain contains a network of cells called the cranial nerves. Similarly, the spinal cord has a network of cells called the spinal nerves. These two types of nerves form a larger system called the peripheral nervous system (PNS). This nervous system interacts with another systems, the endocrine system. The endocrine system is mainly responsible for emotional intelligence. Together with the CNS, the systems are responsible for many aspects of human behaviour, growth and development, metabolism, reproduction, etc. (Bansal et al, 2018).
The endocrine system is primarily made up of glands and nerves. Glands are a group of cells that produce hormones. A hormone is a chemical that is transported to specific organs to control physiology and behavior. Hormones work in association with the brain by sending feedback to affect neural processing.
One main way the two systems work together is through the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus sits at the base of the brain, close to the pituitary gland. The pituitary gland releases messenger hormones that control the rest of the endocrine system. This gland also releases growth hormones, and together with the thyroid gland, they support appetite and metabolism.
The adrenal gland are located in the kidneys. They are responsible for stress response. For instance, if a person encountered danger, the adrenal glands produce epinephrine (adrenaline). This hormone relays the stress to the brain, and the brain processes the information to initiate a fight-or-flight reaction.
Due to the interconnectivity of structures and organs, the best way to improve organ function would be to observe proper nutrition. The brain requires fats, vitamins, and other micro-nutrients to function maximally. These nutrients do not naturally occur in the body, they need to be ingested. The brain also requires variety and balance. As such, nutrients should come from different food types and they should be consumed in the right amount. For instance, the brain relays a lot of information in and out of the nervous system. This relay is facilitated by nerves which are coated by the myelin sheath. The myelin sheath is made up of protein and fatty substances. Therefore, for the brain to properly relay signals all over the body, one has to eat the right amount of proteins and healthy fats.
Reference
Bansal, K., Nakuci, J., & Muldoon, S. F. (2018). Personalized brain network models for assessing structure–function relationships. Current opinion in neurobiology , 52 , 42-47.
