Family history of bipolar affects decision to have children

Published on November 4, 2007 at 7:43 PM

One in three people with a strong family history of bipolar disorder (manic depression) are reluctant to have children due to the hereditary nature of the illness and its perceived social stigma, new research from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) has found.

The findings, to be published this month in the journal Psychological Medicine, suggest the negative attitude to childbearing is significantly more pronounced with bipolar disorder than with other hereditary diseases such as Huntington disease or hereditary cancer - even when the genetic risks are lower.

Researchers from UNSW’s Faculty of Medicine surveyed 200 people with a strong family history of bipolar disorder, including 105 with the illness, and found that more than a third (35 percent) was either unwilling or less willing to have children. That number rose to 50 percent among those diagnosed with the condition.

Lead author of the study, Associate Professor Bettina Meiser, from the School of Psychiatry at UNSW and the Psychosocial Research Group at Sydney’s Prince of Wales Hospital, says the attitude was pronounced.

“The proportion of people less willing or unwilling to have children is not in line with other genetic disorders,” Professor Meiser says.

“We know from studies into childbearing among people at high risk of cancer, for example, where the lifetime risk for a gene mutation carrier can be 80 per cent or more, that attitudes to child bearing are not affected in any significant way. Even having a very serious disorder, such as Huntington disease, doesn’t deter that many people from having children.

“Our research shows that what makes bipolar disorder unique is the stigma.

To whom it concerns,
Cognoscente of grandiosity, I enclose theories regarding Bi polar and related brain and nervous system disease. However, naïve the speculation is considered and reflect on twenty-year personnel experience of Bi Polar diagnosis.

BRAIN STORMING Emotionally suppressed immunity predisposes fungal, septic, allergic or parasitic inflammatory infection. It is feasible such infections be compounded by congenital physiological anomaly that causes psychological to develop physical symptoms. I am attempting  to ascribe a novel meningitis like syndrome, the manifestation of which is determined by local and nature of the alleged anomaly I.e. Bi-Polar M.N.D, schizophrenia, anxiety disorder, or if protracted, Alzheimer’s, M.S, Parkinson’s etc.  I nominate Dental Ear Nose Throat And Locals as prone to apt infections and deserving scrutiny. As might Herpes Simplex, Soft palette - Sinus to ear - adenoid etc. Infectious diseases role in infancy i.e. chickenpox rubella plus significant latent & deferred predisposition VD or conception contaminants!
      Might depression be better understood the deliberate immune response to agitation? Anxiety, depression and anxious depression, (“Latter underpinning bi polar“) I also propose might link to a pH, critical to physical and emotional well-being e.g. (alkali - depress, acid + excite). Might the immune system also regulate pH to disable infection as a sacrificial but rational defence?  Perhaps immune response to stress self generates retrospective inflammation it then deals with…
    Manias legendary creative insight is legend if valid might it infer relevant brain regions are over serviced at cost to others. Neurotic vascular tension affects peripheral circulation, inclusive for the brain. This constricted circulation affecting immunity, itself a potential hazard. Might circulatory inhibition initiate brain and nervous system failure! Contentious heart brain emotional connection if significant perhaps ties to secretions of mood effecting chemical. Providing a key to the mystery of the physical nature of mood
      Does Alzheimer’s brain cell disintegration link to stress and immunity?  Speculating further link nitric oxide to sulphur dioxide and nitrogen narcosis to mania.  Oxygen liquefaction, sulphur acidic electrolysis pH imbalance? Hydrogen sulphide may results from immune response to infection and depression and evident in halitosis! Conversely E.C.T., alcohol, aspirin or nicotine anger, may be a counter plaques or inflammatory obstruction

ABCD …
  1 ANXIETY + ACTIVE
  2 CONSTRICTED CIRCULATION,
  3 DEPRESSIVE - REACTIVE CYCLE
  4 ANXIOUS / DEPRESSION + - POS / NEG
  5 IMMUNE VULNERABILITY
  6 INFLAMMATORY INFECTIONS
  7 INFECTION PRONE PHYSIOLOGIES
  8 DENTAL EAR NOSE THROAT etc
  9 EXACERBATE
10 EXTENDED IMMUNE ACTIVITIES
11 BRAIN & NERVOUS SYSTEM DISEASE

REVIEW Stress suppressed immunity invites septic allergic parasitic or fungal infections. A congenital physical anomaly I suggest compounds and determines a brain or nervous system disease, where pH balance is vital to well being! We might suggest pH divides conscious from sub conscious as Rom Ram. pH if chemically saturated is destabilised.

ANECDOTES I recall lithium / MAOI therapy impact in a bubbling sensation in my forehead as anxiety ceased and depression lifting followed in a palpable foul odour within my sinus. The idiosyncratic efficacy of medication might like excessive smoking and alcohol consumption by patients may be telling! Subliminal excesses directed to functional or anti septic benefit to infections, possibly overlooked due to negative impact.
DIET Does nutrition, vitamin mineral and metabolism deserve more consideration in the mind body function? Assuming human evolution varies between hunter-gatherers and agrarians. One spontaneous and volatile the other measured and phlegmatic and certainly contemporary hybridisation would hinder cataloguing relevant DNA anomalies.
CONSIDER Measured geographically separate populations consistently demonstrate approximate 1 to 2% occurrence of Bi Polar disorder. This statistic implies an ancient common gene pool. The survival of Bi Polar as a naturally selected mutation transcends its negative impact. It is reasonable to assume a percentage of same, benefit socially from this genetic mutation. Thus, evolutionary created experimental eccentricity creates DNA anomalies that can yield in some specific dynamic, psycho-sociological advantage.
MURPHYOLOGY an inventive exiled fringe dwelling ice age melancholic, with a runny nose, earache, sore throat and rotten teeth inadvertently splits flint. He has the edge and fortuitously his bright spark sets fire to nearby kindling. Would his useful discoveries reinstate him into the tribe with a witch doctors status?

FOOTNOTE A bewildered defective detective finds anxiety dreads what depression recall! While Bi polar is twixt block and cannot face! Does medical conservatism resists the mind body Diaspora!  p = agitation = (+ ~ -) = H = depression