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(More customer reviews)"They'll grow out of it", said Granny. "Don't give up on them", says neuroscientist Jay Giedd. Between these two admonitions, Barbara Strauch vividly relates how old ideas of brain development have been overthrown by recent research. Her judgement of "recent" is expressed with the dismissive comment that any source found prior to 1996 was "too old". She thus adds another brick to the edifice being constructed in cognitive sciences. The studies have gone beyond research in human cognitive studies to include other primates - chimpanzees and monkeys in demonstrating the roots of human behaviour. These findings are providing a wealth of new insights into our evolutionary roots. Strauch has contributed much in our knowledge of who we are in the animal kingdom. Although the studies are new, and further research is necessary, Strauch explains the patterns that are emerging. Further work can only provide more enlightenment.
Although her research covers many fields and countless workers, the key source is Jay Giedd. Giedd was prompted by data showing how adolescent brains exhibited unexpected changes. "Gray matter", that term we so often blithely use to indicate the brain and mind, was expanding in teens. It actually grows beyond that of the average adult, then "dramatically thinning down" some time later. This find suggested many changes are occurring in teen brains - making them, in Strauch's estimate, "a bit crazy . . . but crazy by design". She reminds us throughout the book that while teenagers may appear physically mature in stature, what is going on in their brains is unfinished. They may look like us, but their behaviour is generally radically different. Incomplete brain development is the root cause of these departures from what we consider "normal". It was Giedd's research that sought to provide a baseline of what is "normal" for our children in those tumultuous years.
With the wide-ranging sources she uses, Strauch takes us through all the problems parents face in trying to comprehend the vagaries of teen behaviour. Sex, bizarre sleeping patterns, drugs and alcohol use by teens all have come under new scrutiny by various research teams. They stress the vulnerability of the teen brain to nicotine, alcohol and other toxins. While this may seem obvious, the mechanics of why teens engage in heavy drinking bouts, for example, show how important parental knowledge of the background and impact of these events can be to teen health. Parents shouldn't dismiss such behaviour as "something they'll grow out of" since damage to brain structure can be permanent. Although the evolutionary roots are becoming clear, parental concern remains a major factor in assuring teens don't stumble into damaging behaviour.
As one of the first "popular" books in this emerging field, Strauch's sources are almost entirely academic journals. We rely on her reputation as a New York Times health section columnist to have "done her homework" and there's little doubt she's done so. However, her own role as a mother of teens provides additional enhancement to her reliability. If she has an axe to grind, it is purely one of informing us on topics of concern to us as parents. While this book may be a "first" and may be modified by later studies, the information presented is far too important to ignore. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
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