This special edition of Neurodevelopment and Intelligence contains both Volumes One and Two. The set provides an understanding neurodevelopmental risks during fetal and early life, and of the things that can go awry that limit or hinder healthy brain development, leading to a loss of intellectual abilities or causing disabilities such as autism spectrum disorder. It should be of interest to anyone interested in brain health, preventive medicine, pediatrics, public health policy, present and prospective parents, and those planning on pregnancy and parturition.
Herein, Dr. Lewis explains:
How people got smarter for more than a century and and why the alternative title of the book is Swimming in a Poisoned Pond —The Looming Demise of Cognitive and Mental Health in America
How any healthy child can be a genius with advanced planning
All the nasty things in your home that cause brain damage
The disgusting things in your water that harm the brain
The prenatal vitamins that prevent autism
How ADHD is a lifestyle disease
The eight pillars of health and their effects on the brain
What men can do to sire smarter children
The environmental toxins that cause violent crime and suicide
How to make your home safe for your child’s brain
The role of gut bacteria on the brain
How to make pregnancy safer for the fetal brain
Foods that improve brain function
Maternal life style factors that affect IQ
The seven pillars of health and their effects on the brain
What men can do to sire smarter children
How to make your home safe for your child’s brain
The role of gut bacteria on the brain
The disruptive effects of sleep deprivation and sleep disordered breathing on brain development, and sleep hygiene for children
The effects of stress on the brain and its functioning
The harmful effects of poverty on the brain
How noise and noise pollution harm brain development.
How good public policy can give us a brighter future
Foods that improve brain function and make us happy and engaged
The effects of Exercise and Environmental Enrichment
Kiss your genetic legacy goodbye! Why you will likely never be a grandparent if you don’t already have children
How stress makes us stupid
Why people are getting dumber even though we have better medical care and more access to education.
Are we already too dumb to save ourselves from our mistakes?
How psychopathic corporations, stupidity, and structural racism raid America’s wealth
The book is a serious scientific exploration of neurodevelopment on which policy and personal behavior changes can be based to improve health, happiness, and intellectual curiosity.
Section I section lays out an description of the Intelligence Quotient (IQ) and why it can used as a proxy for neurodevelopment. It explains IQ tests and other developmental scales scoring, and some of their limitations. The high metabolic cost of a large brain and the survival advantage provided by epigenetic adaptation to downsize the brain to the current environmental conditions is described, explaining why a less costly and less intelligent brain are adaptive to leaner times. An estimate is made for the average human IQ in full health and nutrition, (about two standard deviations above the current average, or an IQ of 130). A primer on inflammation is given.
Section 2: discusses the impact of anemia and iron on brain development. Topics include: Hookworm, malaria, and infections. Most of this section discusses iron deficiency, iron supplementation in pregnancy and infancy, and the role other minerals and vitamins required for blood formation
Section 3: Covers the role of iodine and thyroid hormone on neurodevelopment. The following chapters discuss thyroid hormone disruptors including fluoride and bromide, organohalogens, thyroid disrupting organic pollutants, organophosphates and other biocides, and foods and food additives that impact thyroid function
Section 4 covers neurotoxic metals in the environment. The neurotoxic metals that most commonly impact brain health are discussed, including arsenic, lead, mercury, manganese. The impacts of cadmium and aluminum on fetal and infant health are reviewed. Toxic metal exposure during development most commonly occurs from water contamination, and Chapter 18 covers water filtration for removal of these toxins.
Section 5 discusses the role of toxic metals, dietary factors, and the role of the intestinal microbiome on the causation and exacerbation of autism spectrum disorder. Evidence on the role of special diets for ASD is reviewed.The timing of the development of ASD is discussed; as it is essential to understanding which exposures are relevant and amenable to treatment.
Section 6 discussed the generation of air pollution from combustion of fuels and the adverse impacts of it on brain health. Effects of Particulate matter (PM) on health, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease are reviewed, along with its effects on the premature birth of infants, neurodevelopment, IQ, and autism. Mitigation of risk is discussed.
Section 7 outlines maternal factors that impact neurodevelopment and intelligence. The causes and effects of preterm birth and small for gestational age are explored, with a particular focus on environmental influences.
Section 8 covers the effect of general health on neurodevelopment, including the impact of diet on the intestinal microbiome, exercise, sleep deprivation, sleep-disordered breathing, and explains the roll of lifestyle in ADHD.
Section 9 discusses the effects of psychosocial stress on neurodevelopment and intellectual performance, and discusses the epigenetic effects of stress on brain development and behavior. The role of having a supportive social environment, a stimulating environment, and education on brain development, IQ an health are discussed. The effects of prenatal stress on the brain are reviewed. Other topics include the effect of stress and telomere length, the effects of poverty or domestic violence on IQ score, and the effects of stress on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and on the gut. The effects of noise on hearing, academic performance, and sleep are reviewed. The need to confront endemic stress as a societal norm is discussed.