Dementia and digestive troubles are separate problems BUT if the dementia person is eating junk food instead of real meals, Yes, they will have upsets, gas, diarrhea or constipation. At the very end stages of life, the digestive system starts to malfunction, the liver malfunctions (jaundice) the kidneys malfunction (dark urine) and the bowel is unpredictable. It can either clog up (painful) or simply empty out semi-digested contents (abnormal odor). If you see black stool, you are seeing internal bleeding.
Truth is, there is some concern that if anyone answers wrong, or not according to your expectations, your response will be to attack sarcastically. Second, there is some concern that you are literally 'fishing' for any answer that can lead to you advertising a miracle product. Everything I know about tells me NOT to answer this question. Answer: Yes, there is a connection. You can learn about it online by searching for: "gut/brain". Start there. There is research, but I am wondering if this can translate into better care for your wife. Example of research: Tremendous progress has been made in characterizing the bidirectional interactions between the central nervous system, the enteric nervous system, and the gastrointestinal tract. A series of provocative preclinical studies have suggested a prominent role for the gut microbiota in these gut-brain interactions. Based on studies using rodents raised in a germ-free environment, the gut microbiota appears to influence the development of emotional behavior, stress- and pain-modulation systems, and brain neurotransmitter systems. Additionally, microbiota perturbations by probiotics and antibiotics exert modulatory effects on some of these measures in adult animals. Current evidence suggests that multiple mechanisms, including endocrine and neurocrine pathways, may be involved in gut microbiota–to–brain signaling and that the brain can in turn alter microbial composition and behavior via the autonomic nervous system. Limited information is available on how these findings may translate to healthy humans or to disease states involving the brain or the gut/brain axis. Future research needs to focus on confirming that the rodent findings are translatable to human physiology and to diseases such as irritable bowel syndrome, autism, anxiety, depression, and Parkinson’s disease. reference omitted.
If you’ve ever “gone with your gut” to make a decision or felt “butterflies in your stomach” when nervous, you’re likely getting signals from an unexpected source: your second brain. Hidden in the walls of the digestive system, this “brain in your gut” is revolutionizing medicine’s understanding of the links between digestion, mood, health and even the way you think.
Alzheimer's and other dementias are much more than memory problems. If you get a chance google to see a brain scan comparing a normal and Alzheimer's brain, you will see the tremendous amount of brain shrinkage and damage involved.
"The body itself" has no autopilot - everything the body does is from an impulse sent by the brain. So - there is no muscle memory - for lack of a better term - when it comes to any of the digestive process beginning with chewing and ending with elimination. So I guess there are two ways to interpret "memory" and the loss of it in the case of dementia. There is the cognitive stuff; names, addresses, math skills and then the internal memory of the brain sending the body signals. In earlier stages of dementia it is not in common for the sufferer to begin experiencing trouble with swollowing. By the end stages often the body can not digest food - it is the brain stem portion of the brain that is now beginning to die so often other critical body functions are lost at this time as well and death is not long off. I don't know if this helps you, I hope so but if it doesn't please do not be unkind. We are all here to help and be helped - and do the best we can.
Are we talking hypothetical here or do you have a specific problem you are dealing with Fisherman? I do know that Parkinson's is well known to cause GI problems, I know that vascular dementia is related to brain damage from mini strokes and interrupted blood supply to the brain, so if the damage occurs to the part of the brain responsible for digestion it only makes sense that it could cause trouble, and I know that when I see a picture of the brain of someone with advanced alzheimer's I'm amazed that their body can function at all... no wait, it can't, that is ultimately why they die.
But really, keep in mind that techniquly there are no "automatic" functions of the body - which I think is kinda the confusing part in this question. Even reflexes are a product of the brain. For instance, once someone is declared "brain dead" all functions of the body cease. Confusing matters is the fact that occasionally a brain dead person can take up to a week for the body to fully shut down if there is no medical assistance like a ventilator. However, in every function of the body it is the brain in control giving the impulses for peristalsis, production of digestive enzymes, matter to be pushed through the intestines and then ultimately elimination from the body - control of the sphincter muscle etc. So yes, it absolutely depends which area of the brain that is dying determining which body function is lost. Evidently there are common patterns of deterioration which accounts for the commonalities in specific dementias - with typically the brain stem going last and it is the brain stem that controls the most basic body functions such as resperation, digestion, elimination. This is I believe, what gives the impression that some body functions work on autopilot - when in fact the brain is in control of everything. Okay - my head hurts now...must find coffee!
Neurogastroenterology is a cutting-edge field that studies how the brain and gut interact in order to better understand and manage digestion and digestive disorders. What scientists have discovered is that these two areas of the body are closely connected, and this relationship is referred to as the brain-gut axis.
In the later stages of dementia, as the body slows down everything slows down. I am currently dealing quite a bit with constipation..(my husband's constipation). It has gotten worse since he stopped walking a year ago. It has been more difficult to manage now that he is in bed 99% of the time. As the body slows everything slows. It is not that the body "forgets" it is that it takes longer for the body to process since fewer muscles are being used there is less activity to push things along. As to eating in the final stages there are a few things going on. The body is tired and more time sleeping is less of a chance to eat and drink. A lot of the constipation can also be caused by dehydration. Also the body has less need for fuel so hunger is not as evident as it would be in you or I. In the very last stages when the person shows no desire to eat that means the body is shutting down and trying to feed it does more harm than good. Food will either come back up possibly causing aspiration or the food will sit in the gut creating a blockage that could be fatal. the body is not going to spend time and energy digesting food when it needs to spend the energy breathing and keeping the heart going. So when a person stops eating in a case like this a feeding tube is usually going to do more harm than good. The body is not going to feel hunger. So it is not a matter of "forgetting" it is slowing down and depending on the stage a variety of other things can be going on that cause more problems.
At the very end stages of life, the digestive system starts to malfunction, the liver malfunctions (jaundice) the kidneys malfunction (dark urine) and the bowel is unpredictable. It can either clog up (painful) or simply empty out semi-digested contents (abnormal odor). If you see black stool, you are seeing internal bleeding.
Second, there is some concern that you are literally 'fishing' for any answer that can lead to you advertising a miracle product.
Everything I know about tells me NOT to answer this question.
Answer:
Yes, there is a connection. You can learn about it online by searching for:
"gut/brain". Start there. There is research, but I am wondering if this can translate into better care for your wife.
Example of research:
Tremendous progress has been made in characterizing the bidirectional interactions between the central nervous system, the enteric nervous system, and the gastrointestinal tract. A series of provocative preclinical studies have suggested a prominent role for the gut microbiota in these gut-brain interactions. Based on studies using rodents raised in a germ-free environment, the gut microbiota appears to influence the development of emotional behavior, stress- and pain-modulation systems, and brain neurotransmitter systems. Additionally, microbiota perturbations by probiotics and antibiotics exert modulatory effects on some of these measures in adult animals. Current evidence suggests that multiple mechanisms, including endocrine and neurocrine pathways, may be involved in gut microbiota–to–brain signaling and that the brain can in turn alter microbial composition and behavior via the autonomic nervous system. Limited information is available on how these findings may translate to healthy humans or to disease states involving the brain or the gut/brain axis. Future research needs to focus on confirming that the rodent findings are translatable to human physiology and to diseases such as irritable bowel syndrome, autism, anxiety, depression, and Parkinson’s disease. reference omitted.
I do know that Parkinson's is well known to cause GI problems, I know that vascular dementia is related to brain damage from mini strokes and interrupted blood supply to the brain, so if the damage occurs to the part of the brain responsible for digestion it only makes sense that it could cause trouble, and I know that when I see a picture of the brain of someone with advanced alzheimer's I'm amazed that their body can function at all... no wait, it can't, that is ultimately why they die.
I am currently dealing quite a bit with constipation..(my husband's constipation). It has gotten worse since he stopped walking a year ago. It has been more difficult to manage now that he is in bed 99% of the time.
As the body slows everything slows. It is not that the body "forgets" it is that it takes longer for the body to process since fewer muscles are being used there is less activity to push things along.
As to eating in the final stages there are a few things going on.
The body is tired and more time sleeping is less of a chance to eat and drink. A lot of the constipation can also be caused by dehydration.
Also the body has less need for fuel so hunger is not as evident as it would be in you or I.
In the very last stages when the person shows no desire to eat that means the body is shutting down and trying to feed it does more harm than good. Food will either come back up possibly causing aspiration or the food will sit in the gut creating a blockage that could be fatal. the body is not going to spend time and energy digesting food when it needs to spend the energy breathing and keeping the heart going.
So when a person stops eating in a case like this a feeding tube is usually going to do more harm than good. The body is not going to feel hunger.
So it is not a matter of "forgetting" it is slowing down and depending on the stage a variety of other things can be going on that cause more problems.
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