The Brainstem and Cerebellum

The brainstem provides the body’s life-supporting functions, such as control of the heart rate, blood pressure and breathing, as well as less vital but highly important functions such as swallowing, vomiting, sneezing, balance and coordination. Due to the vital functions it controls, damage to the brainstem during head injury leads to coma and death when an increase in intracranial pressure (within the brain) squashes it.

The cerebellum or ‘little brain’ is involved in balance, maintenance of muscle tone, and coordination of fine motor movement. If this area of the brain is damaged, muscle tone decreases and fine motor movements become very clumsy.

Throughout evolution our cerebrum (the large part of the brain that looks like a walnut) has increased in size dramatically making humans number one in cognitive intelligence. While our brainstem and cerebellum provided vital functions and everyday movement, our language, reasoning, learning, sensory perception, and emotional responses developed with the enlargement of the cerebrum.