Back to Basics: The Fantastic Brain Protection System

Picture a fur coat,

over a suit of armour,

over a clingy, stretchy, body suit.

Add a helpful river floating through,

and an invisible fence.

Seal it all up

and there you have it:

Brain Protection!

We frequently marvel at the wonders of the brain and its structures. We know it controls all we do.

It is also a mass of jelly that can’t look after itself.

Damage to the delicate brain often happens because one or more of the systems that protect and feed the brain are interrupted or broken.

How does brain protection happen? How does the brain get the food it needs to keep up?

Brain Protection At Work?

A series of layers protect and enclose the brain to help keep it safe. This protection is probably why many of us survive the bumps and falls of childhood, and the crazy things we do as adolescents and beyond.

These layers are not 100%. They are not able to protect the brain completely. They do the best they can.

So how does a fur cover, a suit of armour, a clingy, stretchy body suit, a helpful river, and an invisible fence, protect your brain?

The Fur Coat – our Hair and scalp

This outer layer of hair, is not just to help us style the look we want to present to the world. The hair and scalp form a cushion that gives some protection when there is impact to the head.

The Suit of Armour – our bony Skull

This bony case around the brain is made famous representing pirates and the darker side of life. It is really a good guy. The skull is like our suit of armour, a solid protection against damage.

The brain can be injured when the skull is damaged or when the brain is damaged through bumping against the rough inside edges of the skull.

The Clingy Stretch Body Suit – The Meninges: Membranes covering the brain.

This is a series of three membranes that cover and enclose the brain. If you are only interested in the basics, that might be all you need to know.

Want a bit more? The three layers are as follows:

– Dura Mater – “tough mother”. What a great image to remind us of what this layer does. A strong outer membrane that completely covers the brain. It also has a rich blood supply and is able to register pain (which our brain cannot).

– Arachnoid – a Greek word meaning “spider”. This might help you remember, this layer looks like a spiders web.

– Pia Mater – “tender mother”. A very thin sheer membrane, covering the entire surface of the brain and central nervous system. It dips into, and follows the folds of the lobes.

More information on these layers known as the Meninges can be found in an article HERE.

Damage to the brain can happen when the meninges (layers) become infected (e.g. Meningitis) or with swelling, or bleeding, in the layers (such as a SubArachnoid haemorrhage) which puts pressure on the brain.

The Helpful River – our Cerebo-Spinal Fluid (CSF)

This fluid is still a bit of a mystery. We don’t entirely know how it works. It is made in cavities within the brain and it does circulate (like a river) around the brain, and up and down the spinal cord.

The brain floats in this CSF, a sort of cushioning river flowing around the structures.

One trick the CSF has is that it can adjust things a little when there is extra pressure in our head. It can take fluid away down the spinal column.

It is also thought this helpful river drains away substances toxic to the brain.

Brain damage can occur when this system gets blocked, infected or a bit out of control. Damage can also happen when there is too much pressure within the head and not enough fluid can drain away.

A website produced by Antranik gives an helpful explanation with diagrams of the protection system including CSF and the Blood Brain Barrier

The Invisible Fence – our Blood Brain Barrier (BBB)

The BBB appears to have cells that form a barrier (fence) to protect the brain. This barrier works in several ways:

Filtering away toxic substances that might harm the brain
Helping to maintain “homeostasis”,(or a lovely stable environment) for the brain.
Protecting the brain from some unwanted substances made in other parts of the body such as hormones and neurotransmitters. Making sure there is enough – but not too much of what is needed.

As well as Antranik above, Neuroscience for Kids has a simple explanation of the Blood Brain Barrier

Breakdown of the BBB appears to be present in some brain disorders such as dementia.

All Sealed for Brain Protection

Just as we seal food and other items to prevent harmful substances getting in, so the brain is sealed up, and pressurised (like a plane) ,to protect it from invaders.

Feeding a Hungry Brain

The brain needs masses of energy all the time. Three things it is important to remember about the brain:

No pantry. The brain has no place to store up energy.
The brain is go go go. It needs a very high level of energy to maintain its function.
The brain never never sleeps. It is always performing. So it always needs energy.

For Our Brain This Means:

If the brain is without its energy supply, even for a short time, it can’t keep functioning at its peak. Temporary or permanent damage can occur.

We need to do whatever we can to keep the brain well fed and happy.

Energy Means:

Energy Input: Your brain uses approximately 20% of the total oxygen supply to the whole body and about 25% of glucose.

Energy Output: Your brain generates enough electricity to power a lightbulb!

How Does the Brain Get Its Energy?

Getting a continuous, reliable, and plentiful supply of clean energy to all parts of the brain ALL THE TIME is a vital mission.

Oxygen and Glucose appear to be key ingredients needed.

GLUCOSE (good sugar) is in high demand. HERE is more information about the brain’s need for Glucose. With more information about the good, and the not so good sugars for the brain.

In very simple terms, the brain gets the sugar energy it needs from what we eat. What we eat is transported to where it is needed by our blood system.

OXYGEN is also transported to brain cells through the circulating blood.

Damage can occur when the necessary energy is not available or Oxygen is prevented from reaching the brain.

And Finally

By now you might be thinking “What’s this got to do with me ”?

Firstly – if you are thinking this AND you have read this far – A BIG THANK YOU. Let me know what you think in the COMMENTS below.

Secondly here are 3 reasons why it’s helpful to know more about brain protection:

The best way to manage (or support) is to understand. Damage to the brain most often occurs through interruption to, or a break in, the brain protection system. You will likely find it easier to manage any aspect of brain injury by understanding the basics.
Understanding can help you look after your own brain, and that of others. Alcohol can cross the protection mechanism and enter the brain.
It can give you advanced warning of the possibility of brain injury. You find clues when you hear a person’s story. If someone has experienced near drowning, had a period without oxygen; and been unconscious. This may lead to a brain injury.

Thirdly. Have you ever wondered about Woodpeckers? How come with all that wood…pecking they don’t have permanent brain injury! Tech21 is not a brain specific site but it does describe how a Woodpecker seems to avoid brain damage. HERE.