A shocking study suggests that consciousness can persist even after the body "dies" and that the process of death should be seen as a negotiable state, not an immediate event.
Traditionally, death has been defined as the irreversible loss of brain function and blood circulation. But experts are challenging this concept, arguing that consciousness can survive even when the brain stops functioning.
A researcher from Arizona reviewed dozens of studies on what happens when people “die.” This included near-death experiences, electrical brain activity during death, and clinical studies on consciousness during heart attacks.
The analysis showed that 20% of heart attack survivors recall conscious experiences during periods when the brain had stopped functioning. Brain recordings of humans and animals at death document increased activity that exceeds normal levels of alertness.
Some patients who experienced “total circulatory arrest” later showed latent memories of what was happening around them. Laboratory experiments have also shown that metabolism, brain activity and blood circulation can recover “beyond accepted limits.”
"Biological death is not immediately irreversible," said Anna Fowler from Arizona.
“New evidence suggests that biological and neural functions do not suddenly cease. They decline gradually, indicating that death occurs as a process, not as an instantaneous event. Elements of consciousness may exist for a short time even after measurable brain activity.”
Fowler added that these findings could have a major impact on the time to recovery of function and organ donation.
"After death, organs should be retrieved immediately to save someone else's life," she said.
"But studies show that up to 90 minutes after death is declared, neural activity in the brain can continue."
She proposes that death be viewed as a staged process, where consciousness, biology, and meaning may persist longer than previously thought.
“Consciousness does not disappear immediately when the brain goes silent. Cells do not die as soon as the heart stops. This research suggests that death is the beginning of a transformation, one that medicine, philosophy, and ethics should address with more humility and clarity.”
According to Dr. Sam Parnia of NYU Langone School of Medicine, some people can even hear their own death being announced, as the brain remains active after the heart stops. His studies show that patients who have recovered from near-death experiences often accurately describe conversations and events that took place in their room.
A 2023 study found that brain wave activity associated with thinking, memory and consciousness can continue for up to 60 minutes after the heart stops, challenging the traditional concept that death is an instantaneous moment. /GazetaExpress/
edition
t7 live
