Dizziness
Dizziness is a common difficulty after fifty. It may mean a faint or unsteady feeling, but usually means a sensation of motion in our surroundings and can be sensed either in daylight or total darkness.
Meniere’s Syndrome, disease of the balancing mechanism within the ear, is the most common cause of dizziness. The inner ear is our main organ of balance, and tells us even in the dark, when we are going straight, turning, or falling. Our balance mechanism may be compared to a glass filled with water. When the glass, like the head, is tilted, the water stays horizontal with the earth’s surface though not with the glass, and a reflex within the brain tells us we are not level. Without such a mechanism as this, it would be impossible for us to stand or walk.
Fig. 5. The balancing mechanism in the head is similar to water in a glass. Changes in fluid level are determined within the brain as changes of position.
Severe cases of Meniere’s Syndrome, can last minutes, hours, weeks or days and may be accompanied by severe nausea and vomiting which force the sufferer to lie motionless in bed to prevent a recurrence of dizziness. Hardening of the Arteries, or arteriosclerosis of the blood vessels in the brain causes about one third of all dizziness. In this disease, blood intended for the brain and certain special nerves, is temporarily decreased because these arteries have too much arteriosclerotic “rust” in them, and the resulting temporary un-dersupply of blood to the brain produces dizziness.
Physiologic Dizziness commonly occurs when we stand up after sitting or lying. It is due to slower reflexes of age and can be explained as follows: in relaxed positions our blood pressure is at a low level, but in suddenly arising, as to answer the telephone, the blood in our bodies tends to run down hill like water in a pan. This may mean a slight reduction of blood for the brain, resulting in temporary dizziness. It usually clears up as soon as the body’s reflex mechanisms equalizes the blood pressure throughout the body.
Many of us have experienced small episodes of dizziness at some time, but severe episodes, especially after fifty, suggest the possibilities of disease in the blood vessels, blood or brain and difficulties with diabetes or thyroid disease. This difficulty should prompt us to seek out our physician for his examination, diagnosis and treatment, if necessary.