Unlock the mysteries of your baby's amazing brain. Synapse Power Nature or Nurture? Prime Time for Learning Your baby is so small and vulnerable. He's totally helpless and dependent on you for every aspect of his care. But within your child lies his most important asset for future independence. It's a tool that holds all his potential for learning and growth: his brain. Synapse Power The tiniest elements of an infant's brain are linked together by 50 trillion connectors called synapses. These tiny connections are responsible for everything he does--laughing, crying, loving, remembering, and, of course, learning. By age 3, the number of synaptic connections has multiplied over 20 times to 1,000 trillion. At about age 10, never-used and rarely used synapses begin to disappear--like unused pathways that become overgrown and eventually no longer exist. A child's overall intelligence is unaffected by this "dying off" process. It simply means it's harder to learn certain things later in life. Adults have about 500 trillion synapses, which are efficient at making the connections that each person uses most often--and learned early on. Nature or Nurture? Researchers used to believe that the workings of the brain unfolded simply as a result of genetics. Now we know that a child's early environment plays an equally important role. In other words, your early interactions with your baby are critically important to her future. The idea isn't new--even Plato described the early years as a time "when the character is being molded and easily takes any impress one may wish to stamp on it." But new research tools, such as positron-emission tomography (PET) scans and other neurobiological techniques, have reinforced the importance of early experience by revealing the mechanisms for how it occurs. Prime Time for Learning The optimal times for learning are when synapse formation for a particular function is at its peak. That means appropriate stimulation is most critical during those times. It's not an exact science; often the brain can "rewire" undeveloped or damaged areas. Young children who lose language due to a stroke eventually can speak normally, for example. But babies with cataracts will never learn to see if the cataracts are not removed before the age of 2. What does all this mean for your little genius? It means the most important thing you can do is start right now to help unlock his full mental, physical, and social potential. Read the articles below to find out how.

The information on this website is designed for educational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for informed medical advice or care. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat any health problems or illnesses without consulting your pediatrician or family doctor. Please consult a doctor with any questions or concerns you might have regarding your or your child's condition.