When is the brain most malleable

You lose what you don't use. When development goes 'awry'. Research has revealed a lot about the consequences of interfering with brain development during these critical times. Compared with the brains of children who have not been neglected, the orphans show evidence of structural, physiological and hormonal changes that lead to IQ deficits, behavioral and learning delays, and mental health problems like ADHD.

The children's brains are not receiving the needed and expected experiences of early childhood, Nelson says. In the womb and in early childhood, the developing brain is also uniquely sensitive to substances, including heavy metals like lead and mercury, drugs like cocaine or nicotine, or pesticides and chemicals, which can cause serious and irreparable damage. The good news is that even in the face of deprivation and harsh environmental assaults, the brains of babies and children are surprisingly resilient.

Nelson's institutionalized children, if placed in good foster care homes before the age of 2, usually bounce right back, their research has shown. What do Romanian orphans have to do with American children? The children at greatest risk for both neglect and, separately, for falling behind their peers in brain development early in life, are kids who live below the poverty line. The six-year study, based on the brain scans of a large sample of predominantly white children, showed that the regions of the brain linked to academic performance were 8 percent to 10 percent smaller in kids who grew up in very poor homes.

The study estimated that as much as 20 percent of the known gap in test scores between low-income children and their peers could be explained by slower development in the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain, areas key to planning, memory and language. In order to isolate the effects of poverty, the UW researchers used a sample of children with relatively highly-educated parents, and excluded kids who may have had brain issues for other reasons, such as prematurity, mental health issues, low-birth weight, and certain chronic illnesses.

But it's not simply about being poor, says Nelson, who just reviewed a study that demonstrated that sensitive caregiving in poor families can compensate for lack of resources. Early intervention is key, but it's never too late. One of the most trying environments for a developing brain is one of constant stress.

When no one is there to help a young child relieve everyday stress with reassurance, or when the stress of the caregiver, family or neighborhood is always high, it becomes toxic. Some argue that the best time to offer help to a family at high risk of having a child in a stressful or low-resource environment is actually before conception, says. Some women don't come in for care until they're well into their second trimester. There's no doubt that it's best to help as quickly as possible when the goal is better brain performance.

But no one advocates giving up on children, or their caregivers, after the age of 3. The brain is remarkably changeable throughout life, Silver says. And trauma and negative experiences also don't affect everyone in the same way, Bosquet Enlow says. You have some kids who have these experiences and thrive. Simpler neural connections and skills form first, followed by more complex circuits and skills. In the first few years of life, more than 1 million new neural connections form every second.

Brain architecture is comprised of billions of connections between individual neurons across different areas of the brain. These connections enable lightning-fast communication among neurons that specialize in different kinds of brain functions.

The early years are the most active period for establishing neural connections, but new connections can form throughout life and unused connections continue to be pruned. Because this dynamic process never stops, it is impossible to determine what percentage of brain development occurs by a certain age.

More importantly, the connections that form early provide either a strong or weak foundation for the connections that form later. The interactions of genes and experience shape the developing brain. Although genes provide the blueprint for the formation of brain circuits, these circuits are reinforced by repeated use.

A major ingredient in this developmental process is the serve and return interaction between children and their parents and other caregivers in the family or community.

The first few years of a child's life are a time of rapid brain growth. At birth, every neuron in the cerebral cortex has an estimated 2, synapses; by the age of three, this number has grown to a whopping 15, synapses per neuron. The average adult, however, has about half that number of synapses. Because as we gain new experiences, some connections are strengthened while others are eliminated.

This process is known as synaptic pruning. Neurons that are used frequently develop stronger connections and those that are rarely or never used eventually die. By developing new connections and pruning away weak ones, the brain is able to adapt to the changing environment. There are a few defining characteristics of neuroplasticity.

While plasticity occurs throughout the lifetime, certain types of changes are more predominant at specific ages. The brain tends to change a great deal during the early years of life, for example, as the immature brain grows and organizes itself. Generally, young brains tend to be more sensitive and responsive to experiences than much older brains. But this does not mean that adult brains are not capable of adaptation.

Genetics can also have an influence. The interaction between the environment and genetics also plays a role in shaping the brain's plasticity. Plasticity is ongoing throughout life and involves brain cells other than neurons, including glial and vascular cells. It can occur as a result of learning, experience, and memory formation, or as a result of damage to the brain.

While people used to believe that the brain became fixed after a certain age, newer research has revealed that the brain never stops changing in response to learning. In instances of damage to the brain, such as during a stroke, the areas of the brain associated with certain functions may be damaged. Eventually, healthy parts of the brain may take over those functions and the abilities can be restored.

It is important to note, however, that the brain is not infinitely malleable. Certain areas of the brain are largely responsible for certain actions.

For example, there are areas of the brain that play critical roles in things such as movement, language, speech, and cognition. Damage to key areas of the brain can result in deficits in those areas because, while some recovery may be possible, other areas of the brain simply cannot fully take over those functions that were affected by the damage.

There are things you can do to help encourage your brain to adapt and change. Some of the ways that you can utilize neuroplasticity in beneficial ways include:. Learning environments that offer plenty of opportunities for focused attention, novelty, and challenge have been shown to stimulate positive changes in the brain. This is particularly important during childhood and adolescence, but enriching your environment can continue to provide brain rewards well into adulthood.

Things you can try include:. Research has shown that sleep plays an important role in dendritic growth in the brain. By strengthening these connections, you may be able to encourage greater brain plasticity.

Sleep has been shown to have important effects on both physical and mental health. You can find ways to improve your sleep by practicing good sleep hygiene.

Regular physical activity has been shown to have a number of brain benefits. Some research suggests that exercise might help prevent neuron losses in key areas of the hippocampus, a part of the brain involved in memory and other functions.

One review published in the journal Frontiers in Neuroscience suggested that exercise could also play a role in neurogenesis in the hippocampal region. Beliefs and theories about how the brain works have evolved substantially through the years. Early researchers believed that the brain was "fixed" while modern advances have indicated that the brain is more flexible. Up until the s, researchers believed that changes in the brain could only take place during infancy and childhood.

By early adulthood, it was believed that the brain's physical structure was mostly permanent.