Skip to main content

Life may actually flash before your eyes on death - new study

New data from a scientific "accident" has suggested that life may actually flash before our eyes as we die.

A team of scientists set out to measure the brainwaves of an 87-year-old patient who had developed epilepsy. But during the neurological recording, he suffered a fatal heart attack - offering an unexpected recording of a dying brain.

It revealed that in the 30 seconds before and after, the man's brainwaves followed the same patterns as dreaming or recalling memories.

Brain activity of this sort could suggest that a final "recall of life" may occur in a person's last moments, the team wrote in their study, published in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience on Tuesday.

Dr. Ajmal Zemmar, a co-author of the study, said that what the team, then based in Vancouver, Canada, accidentally got, was the first-ever recording of a dying brain.

He told the BBC: "This was actually totally by chance, we did not plan to do this experiment or record these signals."

So will we get a glimpse back at time with loved ones and other happy memories? Dr. Zemmar said it was impossible to tell.

If I were to jump to the philosophical realm, I would speculate that if the brain did a flashback, it would probably like to remind you of good things, rather than the bad things," he said.

"But what's memorable would be different for every person."

Read also: Teshie “Rasta Road” - Meet the man behind the name

Dr. Zemmar, now a neurosurgeon at the University of Louisville, said in the 30 seconds before the patient's heart stopped supplying blood to the brain, his brainwaves followed the same patterns as when we carry out high-cognitive demanding tasks, like concentrating, dreaming or recalling memories.

It continued 30 seconds after the patient's heart stopped beating - the point at which a patient is typically declared dead.

This could possibly be a last recall of memories that we've experienced in life, and they replay through our brain in the last seconds before we die."

The study also raises questions about when, exactly, life ends - when the heart stops beating, or the brain stops functioning.

Dr Zemmar and his team have cautioned that broad conclusions can't be drawn from a study of one. The fact that the patient was epileptic, with a bleeding and swollen brain, complicates things further.

I never felt comfortable to report one case," Dr Zemmar said. And for years after the initial recording in 2016, he looked for similar cases to help strengthen the analysis but was unsuccessful.

But a 2013 study - carried out on healthy rats - may offer a clue.

In that analysis, US researchers reported high levels of brainwaves at the point of the death until 30 seconds after the rats' hearts stopped beating - just like the findings found in Dr. Zemmar's epileptic patient.

The similarities between studies are "astonishing", Dr. Zemmar said.

They now hope the publication of this one human case may open the door to other studies on the final moments of life.

I think there's something mystical and spiritual about this whole near-death experience," Dr. Zemmar said. "And findings like this - it's a moment that scientists lives for."

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Nestlé Ghana Limited Wins Overall Best Industrial Company Of The Year at 13th AGI Industry & Quality Awards

  Nestlé Ghana Limited has been honored with four prestigious awards at the 13th Association of Ghana Industry and Quality Awards ceremony. The event, held in an esteemed setting, gathered prominent figures from Ghana’s industrial sector. Amidst the anticipation, Nestlé Ghana emerged as one of the evening’s notable winners, securing accolades in several key categories. This recognition underscores Nestlé Ghana’s relentless pursuit of excellence and innovation, marking a significant milestone that highlights the company’s substantial contributions to the manufacturing industry in Ghana. Nestlé Ghana's exceptional performance was acknowledged with the following awards: Overall Best National Quality Award, Diamond Category (Food) Overall Best Practices in Sustainable Manufacturing Best Company (Food Sector) Overall Industrial Company of the Year, affirming its status as a leader not only within the food sector but also across Ghana's entire industrial landscape. This success is a ...

Anglogold Ashanti Obuasi Mine tops 2024 Sustainability & Social Investment Awards

 AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi Mine has confirmed its status as sustainability champions by sweeping nine awards, the most won by a company at the 2024 Sustainability & Social Investment Awards (SSI) held at Movenpick Ambassador Hotel in Accra. The feat comes on the heels of a dominant performance in last year's event where AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi Mine swept seven awards. The SSI Awards organised by Ianmatsun Global Services recognizes the most outstanding sustainability, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives in the country and beyond as well as the best teams and individuals who brought them to life. This year's event, which was the 8th edition, was under the theme "Climate Action Now: Accelerating Decarbonization and Building Resilience". The awards won by AngloGold Ashanti on the night include SSI Company of the Year, Best Company in Women Empowerment (project), SSI Company of the Year ( Environment), Best Co...

Zoomlion Advocates Community & Gender inclusive waste management for Climate Action at COP 29

 Africa's waste management giant, Zoomlion Ghana Limited has advocated for an integrated approach to waste management that considers the interest of community members, women and vulnerable groups. James Deku, a Communications Officer of Zoomlion Ghana Limited made this call at the 29th session of the Conference Of Parties (COP 29) of the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC) at Azerbaijan, Baku whiles speaking on the topic "Community-Driven and Gender Inclusive approaches to waste management for Climate Action ". He said the waste sector is a major contributor of methane emissions which is a potent greenhouse gas causing climate change hence the need to manage waste in a manner that considers the interest of all stakeholders. Zoomlion's waste management model is designed and operated in a manner that considers the interest of all stakeholders. Through a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model, local authorities engage community members in clea...