Scientists say active early learning shapes the adult brain

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-06/vt-ssa052821.php

 

News Release 1-Jun-2021
Virginia Tech

 

An enhanced learning environment during the first five years of life shapes the brain in ways that are apparent four decades later, say Virginia Tech and University of Pennsylvania scientists writing in the June edition of the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience.


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"Our research shows a relationship between brain structure and five years of high-quality, educational and social experiences," said Craig Ramey, professor and distinguished research scholar with Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC and principal investigator of the study. "We have demonstrated that in vulnerable children who received stimulating and emotionally supportive learning experiences, statistically significant changes in brain structure appear in middle age."

The results support the idea that early environment influences the brain structure of individuals growing up with multi-risk socioeconomic challenges, said Martha Farah, director of the Center for Neuroscience and Society at Penn and first author of the study.



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