PETITE ENFANCE

Cerveau Du Bébé: Il Entend, Voit, Rêve, Compte Et Mémorise

Les recherches sur le cerveau des tout-petits, des nouveaux- nés , effectuées par Ghislaine Dehaene et de son mari Stanislas Dehaene, nous révèlent que le cerveau des bébés n’est pas une ardoise vierge :   Il entend, il voit, il rêve, il compte et il mémorise. Quelle Merveille! 

Ghislaine Dehaene, pédiatre et chercheure au CNRS, dirige l’équipe de Neuro-Imagerie au centre de recherche Neurospin, à Saclay.  Elle étudie la façon dont se mettent en place la mémoire et la pensée chez le tout-petit. 

Dans une de ses recherches  En Développement Cognitif Du Nourrisson,  on  ne peut que s’émerveiller du développement du cerveau chez le bébé : «  Les bébés âgés de trois mois ont le sens des nombres »

Selon cette recherche, les bébés sont capables de faire la différence entre 2 et 4, ou bien entre 4 et 8.  On a pu le démontrer grâce à un outil ( l’électro  ­encéphalographie ) qui enregistre les réponses électriques du cerveau.  Quand on montre à plusieurs reprises des images différentes comportant deux canards, le cerveau du bébé s’habitue, il répond de moins en moins. Mais si l’on change le nombre des canards, l’enfant réagit, ce qui se traduit par une modification des ondes électriques cérébrales.

Ghislaine Dehaene démontre aussi dans ses recherches que le bébé n’est pas une ardoise vierge, il sait reconnaître les odeurs et  les visages et déterminer que ce qu’il voit est vivant ou pas.  Le bébé reconnaît la voix de sa mère jusque dans son sommeil.  Les régions du cerveau sollicitées quand l’enfant entend sa mère sont les régions auditives et aussi les zones des émotions. Alors que quand  le bébé entend une voix étrangère, les zones des émotions ne répondent pas.

Référence :

Dans le cerveau des tout-petits

http://www.pourlascience.fr

http://www.lavie.fr/hebdo/2010/3358/dans-le-cerveau-des-tout-petits-06-01-2010-1647_88.php

http://www.unicog.org/bblab/topic/index.html

http://www.unicog.org/bblab/nosresultats/index.html

http://www.unicog.org/people/ghis/topic1/index.html#3

 

 

Depression In Preschoolers

Research shows that depression is hitting kids as young as three

(( This text is a resume of Luby’s research on early depression))

 

BY HALA ELM

 

Depression is hitting at younger ages.   Luby’s research from Washington University in St. Louis as well as other studies now counter that view.

Joan Luby, a principal investigator on the study, and professor of child psychiatry at WUSM, has been following - for several years - a group of individuals diagnosed with depression during their preschool years.

Her findings show that young children report similar depressive symptoms as adults, but exhibit the symptoms differently.  Children, for instance, who are depressed can’t find pleasure in any fun activities an and they can’t have fun doing anything, from playing, to watching television, to going on vacation. They are miserable most of the time regardless of activity.

Luby pointed out that depression in children as young as three years of age is real and not just a passing grumpy mood.  Luby points out that until fairly recently, “people really haven’t paid much attention to depression disorders in children under the age of six because children under six were too emotionally immature to experience it.”

Luby found that the preschoolers who came into her study and were diagnosed as depressed were four times as likely to be depressed two years later compared to a control group of healthy children.

An ongoing study funded by the National Institutes of Mental Health and conducted by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine (WUSM) attempts to pinpoint and understand psychiatric disorders in preschoolers, and one aspect of the study focuses specifically on preschool-aged depression.

The research studied the temper tantrums of 270 children between the ages of 3 and 5. Those children identified with having a major depressive disorder (MDD) either exclusively,  or MDD along with a disruptive disorder such as ADHD ), showed more extreme aggressive behavior toward a caregiver, parent, or object such as a toy.  They also displayed self-injurious behaviors.

Beware that depression is now diagnosed in even toddlers!  The sooner our children get the right diagnosis and the right treatment, the better the prognosis.   A child today is ten times more likely to be seriously depressed compared to a child born in the first third of this century.

Almost one-third of thirteen-year olds have marked depressive symptoms.

By the time they finish high school,   almost 15 percent have had an episode of major depression. 

One thing most child development researchers agree is that when depression is diagnosed early and properly treated, kids almost can be helped and feel better.  And the earlier you seek treatment the better.

Reference:

Reference:

ttp://www.allpsychologycareers.com/topics/depression-in-preschoolers.html

 

Depression Signs in a Preschooler:

Verbal skills are limited so will have trouble describing feelings. Look for loss of pleasure in play (or inability to enjoy playtime) as well as frequent and unexplained stomachaches, headaches, and fatigue; overactive and excessive restlessness; irritability or low tolerance for frustration; frequent sadness.

Signs and symptoms of possible early childhood depression:

Hopelessness

Inability to enjoy activities

Persistent boredom

Children who prefer to be alone

 

To see What Depression Looks Like in Children By Stages and Ages, Please Refer to:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32271786/ns/health-childrens_health/t/kids-young-can-have-chronic-depression/ Kids as young as 3 can have chronic depression

http://www.coparenting.co.za/articles.php?art_id=62&art_cat_id=17 http://coparenting.co.za/articles.php?art_id=62&art_cat_id=10

http://psychiatry.wustl.edu/c/faculty/FacultyDetails.aspx?ID=270

http://www.oregonlive.com/health/index.ssf/2009/08/depression_can_be_chronic_in_c.html

(see Childhood Developmental Psychology

The Big Book of Parenting Solutions: 101 Answers to Your Everyday Challenges and Wildest Worries.

The Big Book of Parenting Solutions: 101 Answers to Your Everyday Challenges and Wildest Worries. More specific recommendations, up-to-date research and parenting solutions are provided in the chapter on Depression.

Child and adolescent psychiatrist, David Fassler, MD, offers these signs of childhood depression in his must-read book, “Help Me, I’m Sad!”