Already in the 19th century, scientists knew that two areas in the left hemisphere of the human brain are responsible for speech. The first is for the production of speech, the second is busy with its recognition. These findings were based on a study of patients who, after suffering a stroke, suffered from brain damage. However, according to recent studies, speech neural circuits are much more complex than previously thought.
In 1860, the French anatomist Pierre Brock discovered a lesion in the left frontal lobe in a former patient of the clinic. After a stroke, the patient was unable to control his right hand and lost the ability to speak. Since similar injuries began to be found in other people with similar symptoms, this damaged area of the brain was named after the doctor Broca. Simultaneously with these events, the German doctor Karl Wernicke proved the connection between the ability to understand speech and the lesion of the posterior edge of the left temporal region (this area also received the name of the author of the study - Wernicke). It is difficult to overestimate the contribution of Brock and Wernicke to research on the ability of the brain to support human speech function.
The years passed. Scientists have somewhat refined the traditional theory that was established among brain scientists in the days of Brock and Wernicke. It turned out that Broca's Center, which is responsible for speech, and Wernick's area, which provides speech understanding, have many additional functions that were not previously considered. For example, a certain associative center has been found whose main responsibility is to maintain the structure of sentences and phrases.
In addition, it turned out that Wernicke's center is blocked in deafness. In order to restore speech, a person begins to speak loudly. With complete deafness, the speech circle breaks and the person stops speaking (becomes deaf-mute).
The Broca Center is impaired in infantile cerebral palsy. And the associative center can stop performing its functions in case of neurological diseases and brain injury.
Such a phenomenon as stuttering is explained by the presence of a periodic rupture of the speech circle. It is already known how this speech circle is formed. Almost immediately after birth, the child begins to babble - therefore, an effective Broca center is already emerging. After a short time, the baby begins to recognize some words that are basic for him - a Wernicke zone is created. And only by the age of 2, the child develops an associative center, since the baby is already able to communicate with phrases. At this time, all speech centers are synchronized. But sometimes the process does not go as expected, speech disorders occur and medical help is required.
Among the unusual methods of treatment is the one proposed by Dr. Albert Tomatis. The doctor began to promote the treatment of people with hearing and speech impairments with the help of Mozart's music. He cites research from the University of California. So, at the university, for 10 minutes before passing the IQ test, students listened to a Mozart sonata. The test results showed that these students' IQ increased by eight points. This result is called the "Mozart effect".
It is not uncommon for disturbed, previously flawlessly functioning, speech activity (doctors call this aphasia). The causes of aphasia are damage to the speech centers of the brain. It can happen with stroke, traumatic brain injury, encephalitis, abscess, brain tumor, Alzheimer's disease, after brain surgery … Diseases that can also lead to aphasia are atherosclerosis, hypertension, heart defects, head injuries … Of course, this is not a verdict and a huge effort is required not only by doctors and speech therapists, but also by the entire family of the patient. And this will take several years.
Promotional video:
Another group of people who are very susceptible to brain disease that interferes with speech are those who are prone to drinking. Alcohol has the most negative effect on brain function. Drinking people demonstrate impaired motor skills, have a slow reaction, and demonstrate slurred speech. The side effects of intoxication are headache and nausea. The alcoholic's brain cells do not die, but they get damaged and this, in turn, disrupts the connections between neurons. Scientists believe that such damage is most often reversible. But there are cases when such a violation leads to a general neurological disorder: problems with memory begin, loss of orientation and consciousness, blindness occurs, muscle coordination is impaired, and also death is frequent.
Scientists propose the simplest method in order to maintain active memory and speech for a long time (areas of Broca's and Wernicke's zones). You need to try to respond non-trivially to the simplest greetings, for example, “how are you? You need to come up with new answers every time, abandoning the usual answer, you can use anecdotes, come up with humorous answers, use entertaining stories. This will stimulate memory and speech, moreover, you will demonstrate your erudition.
