Schizophrenia is one of the most severe, chronic and disabling brain diseases. The most common assumption about this disease is that those who suffer from it have a "split personality." In the United States and other countries around the world, approximately 1 - 2% of the population has schizophrenia. This works out to about 2 million people diagnosed each year in America. Though it affects men and women at the same frequency, it appears in men usually in the late teens to early twenties and for women in the early twenties to early thirties.

The exact causes are not yet determined, but damaged portions of genes play a big part in the development of schizophrenia. This could be caused by the exposure to viruses in the womb during embryonic development. Other risk factors include environmental conditions such as stress and drug abuse, hypothyroidism, birth trauma, maternal illness and complications while in...