HEALTH - What is Bipolar Disorder?

What is Bipolar Disorder?

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CURE  BRAIN HEALTH  BIPOLAR DISORDER

Bipolar Disorder Affects Men And Women Differently

CUREJOY EDITORIAL AUG 30, 2017
4 Min

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Depression and bipolar disorder are among the most frequently occurring

 mental illnesses in both men and women. Most people have a good idea of

 what depression is, but not everyone knows the signs and symptoms of 

bipolar disorder. While depression is relatively easier to diagnose, many 

medical practitioners are not able to accurately diagnose bipolar disorder. 

This is because depression comes with extremely concrete symptoms, and

 has very little variance in how it manifests itself in both men and women, 

Bipolar disorder on the other hand is more dependent on the severity and

 the individual, and there can be long period between a depressive and 

a manic episode. This can make it more challenging to get an accurate 

diagnosis. Bipolar disorder affects both men and women in equal numbers, 

but in different ways.

Overview Of Bipolar Disorder



Though many of us may have an idea of what bipolar disorder is, most 

people don’t always have a good understanding of how the disorder works. 

Essentially, bipolar disorder causes the patient to suffer from extreme shifts

 in their mood, usually going from a long period of clinical depression to 

an erratic period of mania. In the depressive state, sufferers have 

clear-cut symptoms of clinical depression: continuous low mood, loss of appetite,

 inability to sleep, irritability and lack of concentration, loss of interest in daily 

activities, and worthlessness, hopelessness and helplessness among 

other symptoms. In bipolar disorder, the depressive episode can last 

for months before a manic episode shows up. A manic episode consists 

of an extremely elevated mood, unpredictable behavior, high energy and 

excessive activity, racing thoughts, inability to concentrate on one task,

 impatience, not wanting to sleep and bouts of dangerous and risky behavior,

 such as shopping without regard for financial status or finding 

multiple sexual partners every day. There are two different kinds of

 bipolar disorder: Bipolar I and Bipolar II. In bipolar I, people suffer 

from periods of depression followed by a single period of mania that lasts

 a few days to a few weeks at the most. In bipolar II, depressive episodes 

are followed up with hypomania, which is similar to mania but has milder 

and more subdued symptoms.

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Gender Differences In Bipolar Disorder



In the past, medical practitioners believed that bipolar disorder affects men

 and women similarly. While there has been past research that has shown

 there is some difference in men and women, the default diagnosis is based 

on what men experience. For example, researchers did know that pregnancy 

can trigger an episode in women and the disorder shows up later in life for 

women when compared to men, and that men are more likely to have problems 

with alcohol and drugs when diagnosed with bipolar disorder. However, new 

research shows that not only is bipolar disorder different in how it manifests

 in men and women, but also that there are distinct biological differences in 

men and women with bipolar disorder. The research was conducted at 

Pennsylvania State University, and found that abnormalities in the

 immune system functioning is related to how bipolar disorder develops 

in people.

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The Research Findings



People who are suffering from bipolar disorder are also seen to have 

autoimmune issues, and that their immune “markers” in the body are different 

when compared to healthy individuals. Two of these “markers” are zinc and 

neopterin blood levels, and both of these are elevated in bipolar disorder. 

When women had higher levels of zinc in their blood, they had more severe

 episodes of depression. On the other hand, high levels of neopterin in men 

made them have a more severe manic episode. However, high levels of 

neopterin in women and high levels of zinc in men did not have the same 

effect as it did on the other gender. This essentially means that the 

immune system is going haywire in different ways in men and women

. Women are more prone to depressive episodes than men in bipolar disorder, 

and this finding can help to treat each gender more effectively. Currently,

 both genders have the same treatment in medication for this disorder, but this 

new research shows that this may not always be effective. Individual and 

personalized treatment is important because each person reacts differently to 

medication, and usually a combination of different medications are required to

 tackle the symptoms. Knowing how men and women differ in their body and

 brain chemistry can help to create better medication for the future.

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Disclaimer: The content is purely informative and educational in nature and 

should not be construed as medical advice. Please use the content only in

 consultation with an appropriate certified medical or healthcare professional.