Blog

PLACE MATTERS … AND IT MATTERS MOST FOR VERY YOUNG CHILDREN: BUILDING ON THE BETTER BABIES FRAMEWORK by Charles Bruner The For Our Babies campaign has established four important policy pillars for very young children (prenatal care, paid leave, well baby care and quality infant toddler care) as well as calling needed attention to policies […] Read more

Benefits for Babies Exposed to Two Languages A team of investigators and clinician-scientists in Singapore and internationally have found that exposure to dual languages in infancy can have cognitive advantages for children. The generalized cognitive advantages emerge early and are not specific to any particular language. Read more here. Exposure of Pregnant Women to Certain […] Read more

Guest Blog by Cindy Arstein- Kerslake The Center for Disease Control reports that the incidence of autism is now 1 in every 68 children. Research shows that early identification and early intervention is the most effective way to address developmental delays. The Early Identification page of the California Making Access Possible (MAP) for Inclusion & […] Read more

Building on a concept that I first introduced in my book “For Our Babies: Ending the Invisible Neglect of America’s Infants”, I recently wrote and narrated a six minute animated video, for use with the general public, called “The Social Womb”.  The video and an accompanying paper are both available for public use. The video […] Read more

From the ZERO TO THREE Baby Monitor: It’s that time of year again!  Across the country, children are heading back to school and families are preparing to make sure their children have what they need to be ready to learn. But as early childhood professionals, we know that preparing children for success in school and […] Read more

By Suzanne Flint, Library Programs Consultant & Principal Architect of ELF Initative CA State Library Public libraries reach millions of children and their families each year. Neuroscientists tell us that the type of learning that occurs in libraries — self-directed, experiential, content-rich — promotes executive function skills that can shape a child’s success in school […] Read more

Products with Antibacterial Compounds Expose Women and Fetuses to Potential Health Risks This recent study from Arizona State University (ASU) has found two compounds, triclosan and triclocarbon (commonly used germ-killers in soaps and other products), in all of the pregnant women and in about half of the fetuses they tested. There is increased evidence showing […] Read more

Study Shows How Early Maternal Attachment Behavior Hardwires the Infant Brain New research out of New York University Langone is the first to show – in real-time electrical readings from rat pups’ brains- how early maternal attachment behaviors such as nursing, protecting, and grooming of pups, influence key stages of postnatal brain development. The mother’s […] Read more

Guest Blog By Deborah J. Weatherston, PhD A recent recommendation from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) that parents read aloud regularly to their babies beginning in infancy is really big news for babies and the infant mental health community.  Literacy promotion by pediatricians during every well baby visit encourages parents to listen and very […] Read more

Memories of Life as an Infant are Forgotten due to Rapid Pace of Brain Growth  The LA Times reported this month on research by Neuroscientists in Japan and Canada who recently conducted a series of experiments showing how more memories are retained with a slower pace of brain-cell generation. The results of these experiments were […] Read more