The Smart Advantage

Raise a Smarter Child by Kindergarten: Raise IQ points by up to 30 points and turn on your child's smart genes Points
by David Perlmutter, M.D., Carol Colman

Between birth and age five, your child has up to thirty IQ points at stake. Scientists now know that the human brain is undergoing a constant and dramatic transformation in the first years of life. During this peak time of development, every activity and experience leaves an indelible mark on your baby's brain, for better or worse. The right kind of stimulation and nutrition will create connections in the brain that promote intelligence and raise IQ. The wrong kinds of activities and foods can stifle intellectual development, destroy brain cells, and leave your child more vulnerable to learning or behavior problems down the road. So, what can you do during the first five years to ensure that your child is primed to excel?

The good news is that raising a smarter child is easier than you think. It doesn't require making an investment in expensive equipment or high priced tutors. It's as simple as playing the right games, serving the right foods, and maintaining a brain-enhancing environment in your home by eliminating common household toxins. In Raise a Smarter Child by Kindergarten by Dr. David Perlmutter, you'll learn easy and highly effective strategies that can vastly improve your child's brain power and reduce his or her chances of developing ADD and ADHD. For example, you can:

Stimulate Memory: Changing a component on the over-the-crib mobile every week makes the baby compare what was there before to what's there now, reinforcing memory pathways in the brain that are critical for learning.

Spread out those shots: Schedule more frequent trips to the pediatrician for vaccinations, so that fewer shots are administered at once. Flooding the immune system with a cocktail of different vaccines can damage the nervous system.

Get rid of toxins: Protecting a child from neurotoxins found in foods, toys and even baby bottles can help preserve precious IQ points.

Dr. Perlmutter provides a scientifically backed food and supplement plan for children and nursing mothers and details the many brain-building activities that you can do with your child. In addition, he reveals the numerous toys and household products that contain harmful, brain-damaging toxins and shows how to identify and combat common childhood problems like ADD and food allergies that may affect your child's development.

Your job over the first five years is to help your child build the best brain possible. With Dr. Perlmutter's help, you can mine the countless opportunities you have each day to make your child smarter, happier and better prepared to excel.

Chapter 1

What does it take to raise a smarter child? What must parents do during the first five years of life to ensure that their child is primed to excel in school and in life?

The good news is, raising a smarter child is easier than you think. It doesn't require making an investment in expensive equipment or high-priced tutors. Nor do you have to devote every waking minute to demanding academic drills. There are easy (and I do mean easy) yet highly effective strategies that can vastly improve your child's brain power. It's as simple as playing the right games with your child, putting the right food on your child's plate, maintaining a brain-enhancing environment in your home, and last but not least, giving your child lots of love.

I'm a neurologist, a physician who specializes in disorders of the brain and nervous system. At my offices at the Perlmutter Health Center in Naples, Florida, I have worked with both children and adults for more than twenty years. I am also a father of two teenage children. Over the past five years, there have been incredible breakthroughs in the field of neurosciences--particularly in the area of early childhood development - that have given us a new understanding of how the brain develops.

Science now tells us that the human brain is unfinished at birth. There's a brief window of opportunity in a child's life when parents can help create a brain that is built for optimal performance. Your child's future depends on how well you do that job. If you do your job well, you will raise a smarter child who will fulfill his or her full intellectual potential.

When I was in medical school, the prevailing scientific view was that the brain you are born with is your brain for life. This belief has now been refuted. New and more effective imaging techniques have provided a window into the brain that has enabled us to see how the brain changes throughout our lifetime. We now know that the human brain is undergoing a constant and dramatic transformation from birth until about age 5 and, to a lesser extent, throughout our entire lives. The brain can be shaped and molded well into adulthood and even into old age, but the most important work is done in early childhood. And that's when parents can make the biggest impact on the lives of their children.

During the peak time of brain development, every activity and experience leaves an indelible mark on your baby's brain, for better or worse. The right kind of stimulation will create connections in the brain that promote intelligence and emotional stability. The wrong kind of stimulation - or lack of stimulation - can stifle intellectual development, destroy brain cells, and leave your child more vulnerable to learning or behavior problems down the road.

Some of you may be thinking: Isn't intelligence largely determined by genetics? Won't smart parents automatically have smart children? And if that's true, what can you do about your child's genes? We now know that for the most part, great brains are made, they are not born. From birth to age 3, up to 30 IQ points are up for grabs. Children may be born with the genetic potential to have a higher than average IQ, but if they are not properly nurtured and nourished during the first few years of life, they will not achieve their full potential. What parents do - or fail to do - can win or lose IQ points.

Don't Let Your Child Miss Out

Lots of well-meaning parents are missing key opportunities to enhance their children's intellectual and emotional well-being, not because they are derelict in their duties, but because they are not fully informed.

There are simple ways you can make your child smarter and make sure that those precious IQ points don't go down the drain.

• Breast-feeding your baby for the first twelve months of life can boost her IQ by up to 8 points. If you can't breast-feed or have to stop early, be sure to use a commercial infant formula that is fortified with brain-boosting nutrients.

• Feed your toddler an optimal diet to enhance brain growth. Even a slight deficiency in a key vitamin, mineral, or nutrient (such as iron or iodine) during the time when the brain is going through its spectacular growth spurt can result in a lower IQ, poor test scores, depression, and even teen drug abuse down the road.

• Engage your baby in mentally stimulating activities from the first few weeks of life through her entire childhood. The right games and activities can improve her memory, boost her mental capacity, and hone her critical thinking skills.

• Limit the amount of time your child spends watching TV and DVDs and playing video games. Excess time spent watching TV and playing video games during early childhood adds up to poor grades at school.

• Introduce your child to formal musical training by age 4. It will make him a stronger math and science student.

• Early training on a computer can improve your child's cognitive function and better prepare him for school.

• Protect your child from common brain toxins found in food, toys, clothing, and even your own backyard that can cause learning problems and rob her of IQ points.

• Raise your child in a warm, loving, low-stress environment with attentive caregivers.

Every choice a parent makes, from what to feed a child, to how much TV a child watches, to the choice of caregiver can profoundly affect a child's brain growth and development. And so much of your child's brain development is under your control.

Copyright © 2006 by David Perlmutter, M.D.

About the Author

David Perlmutter, M.D., is a board-certified neurologist and founder of the Perlmutter Health Center. He is the author of The Better Brain Book and a recipient of the Linus Pauling Award. Dr. Perlmutter has appeared widely on television and as a speaker. He lives in Naples, Florida.

Carol Colman is the author of a dozen books, including the New York Times bestsellers Stop Depression Now and The Melatonin Miracle. Carol lives in New York City.