A new study suggests a trend toward developing hyperactivity among typically developing elementary-school-aged siblings of autistic preschoolers and supports the notion that mothers of young, autistic children experience more depression and stress than mothers with typically developing children. The study was published in the March issue of the journal Focus on Autism and Other Developmental […]
A mother’s nurture may provide powerful protection against risks her baby faces in the womb, according to a new article published online today in the journal Biological Psychiatry. The research shows that fetuses exposed to high levels of stress hormone – shown to be a harbinger for babies’ poor cognitive development – can escape this […]
New research using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) shows that childhood stress such as abuse or emotional neglect, in particular when combined with genetic factors, can result in structural brain changes, rendering these people more vulnerable to developing depression. The study led by scientists at Trinity College Dublin has just been published in the international scientific […]
A new study by researchers from the University of Miami shows that maternal sensitivity may influence language development among children who go on to develop autism. Although parenting styles are not considered as a cause for autism, this report examines how early parenting can promote resiliency in this population. The study entitled, “A Pilot Study […]
Executive functioning is a set of advanced cognitive functions – such as the ability to control impulses, remember things, and show mental flexibility – that help us plan and monitor what we do to reach goals. Although executive functioning develops speedily between ages 1 and 6, children vary widely in their skills in this area. […]
Advanced maternal age is linked to a significantly elevated risk of having a child with autism, regardless of the father’s age, according to an exhaustive study of all births in California during the 1990s by UC Davis Health System researchers. Advanced paternal age is associated with elevated autism risk only when the father is older […]
Why do people with fragile X syndrome, a genetic defect that is the best-known cause of autism and inherited mental retardation, recoil from hugs and physical touch – even from their parents? New research has found in fragile X syndrome there is delayed development of the sensory cortex, the part of the brain that responds […]
Half of the mothers who took part in a study thought that their obese four or five year-old was normal weight, as did 39% of the fathers, according to the February issue of Acta Paediatrica. When it came to overweight children, 75% of mothers and 77% of fathers thought that their child was normal weight. […]
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