What makes epilepsy and seizures so mysterious? Ancient people did not understand what a seizure was. They saw that some people would have unexplained changes in their behavior, and they did not understand why. Some people thought that the gods or spirits were involved in seizures. The Romans called epilepsy the sacred disease, thinking that gods talked to people during seizures. In the Middle Ages, people believed that seizures were caused by a demon inside the body who invisibly "seized" the person. Hence the name seizure. Fear spread quickly and soon people believed that even breathing the same air as an epileptic patient could let the demon travel to other people. Therefore, people with seizures were isolated and restrained. Their "doctors" were priests who tried to send the demon away. Not only were these treatments unhelpful, but they could also be dangerous for the patients. To provide the right treatment, doctors needed to know the cause of epilepsy. In the Middle Ages, they did not know what we know now. Today we know that seizures happen in the brain. The brain is responsible for almost every aspect of our behavior. The brain detects scents, creates our feelings, and holds our memories.

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MPAA: PG
Go to source: https://kids.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/frym.2019.00052