A Child's Brain and Development

"The best parents are the ones that let their kids know they're loved and supported no matter what."

Birth to 5 years: crucial

Child development particularly from birth to 5 years is the most crucial part of a child’s development. Decades of neuroscience and behavioral research proves the significance of this truth. A newborn has all the cells its brain will ever need but the wiring isn’t there yet, and for most of its part, you are responsible for it.

A child’s brain doubles in size in the first year and continues to grow about 80% of adult size by age 3. By the tender of age 2 to 3, the brain has about twice as many synapses or connections developed, as will it have in adulthood.

Brains are built over time, from the bottom up: the basic architecture of human brain is such that during the early years, a brain acquires millions of new neural connections. These connections proliferate and later prune to give a wired framework of the brain. Pruning is a process through which the brain connections of a child’s brain begin to be reduced. This helps these connections become more efficient. By the tender age of 5, a child’s brain is 90% grown.

Genes and Environment 50-50

Even though a baby’s early brain development is largely affected by genetics, their genes form neurons, essentially creating the structure framework of the brain as an organ, but a large part of this baby’s brain adjusts and changes based on what they receive from their environment, and the input they receive from their parent or caregiver.

A child’s brain needs constant stimulation of the right kind, this includes responsive and loving parenting, free of neglect, extreme or chronic stress.

The interactive influence of genes and development shape the developing brain: a major predictor of the brain’s architecture is the serve and return relationship that a parent or caregiver has with their child. These responses include, smiling, gesturing, giving attention and playing with their child, in the absence of these responses, the human brain’s architecture is wired differently.

Cognitive, emotional and social capacities are inextricably intertwined throughout the entire life. The brain is a very complex organ and its functions operate in a very rich fashion. Emotional well-being, social competence, physical health and cognitive-linguistics build the brick and mortar of the developing brain wireframe and carry on through the successes and failures of a child later in the workplace and community.

Toxic stresses such as abuse, parental neglect, extreme poverty and severe maternal depression plays a significant role in making toxic preconditioned circuits in the brain. In the absence of tender care of adult support, toxic stress manifests into the body and shapes the architecture of the brain in a negative way.

Tying with Neuroscience

Basic principles of neuroscience state that earlier intervention in improving a child’s environment, emotional and physical support in order to achieve better brain architecture and improved interpersonal skills.

A balanced approach to a wholesome lifestyle that includes emotional, social, cognitive and language development best helps children prepare for success in workplace and community in their future years.

Supportive relationships and positive learning beginning from an early life and with support from external parties such as healthcare child psychologists may help to improve the development of children’s brain and its framework. Children need a stable, caring, interactive relationship with adults for their proper nurturing.

The Zero to Three; correctly responding to the baby’s needs at this stage works wonders at developing the foundation of lifelong health and well-being. “Babies are very forgiving” as researchers say; “You don’t have to be perfect, you just have to be good enough.” Most of the times when a baby throws crying episodes it has something to do with feed, or sleep, and during these episodes you know exactly what to do.

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