Scientific Parenting: What Science Reveals About Parental Influence

by Nicole Letourneau, Justin Joschko (With)

The latest research on child development may hold the key to the parenting of the future.

Combining the expertise of its author – a celebrated expert in parent-infant mental health and mother of two – with the latest findings in gene-by-environment interactions, epigenetics, behavioural science, and attachment theory, Scientific Parenting describes how children’s genes determine their sensitivity to good or bad parenting, how environmental cues can switch critical genes on or off, and how addictive tendencies and mental health problems can become hardwired into the human brain.

The book traces conditions as diverse as heart disease, obesity, and depression to their origins in early childhood. It brings readers to the frontier of developmental research, unlocking the fascinating scientific discoveries currently hidden away in academic tomes and scholarly journals. Above all, Scientific Parenting explains why parenting really matters and how parents’ smallest actions can transform their children’s lives.

Genres: Parenting

280 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Polina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I had read this book when I bought it - 6 years ago before my daughter was born. It has nothing to do with parenting - mostly with biology, anotomy, and psychology, but gives very valuable conclusion and advice on what actually influences children's life the most according to modern science.
As a joke I kept wondering who is the audience of this book because it goes so deep into science that I had to revise my biology knowledge, and I loved it, but not sure every parent is ready for that

[Raj · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating (and sometimes scary!) look at infant development. Explains concepts at the boundaries of current science (like epigenetics) in simple terms.

Overly flowery prose can be grating at times.

[Gabriela Liquidano · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book Scientific Parenting explains why parenting really matters and how parents’ smallest actions can transform their children’s lives. The authors, Joschko and Letourneau. go in depth on how abuse begets abuse, addictions begets addictions, and how troubled homes breed troubled youths. Although they talk about how bad homes can make bad children, they also talk about how one third of children that come from bad environmental factors can manage to break free from the cycle of addiction, poverty, and violence. The authors call this resilience, which is the main idea of the whole book. Only a few children acquire resilience because they have intelligence, epigenetics, and relationships. These relationships need not come from home; teachers, coaches, grandparents, and neighbors can all act as vital lifelines to children in need. Lastly this book explains how a parent should simply become the people that their children need them to be. This book is meant to teach people about why parenting matters and that parenting is the most important job in the world.

I for one really enjoyed reading this book because it helped me get a better understanding on how a child is affected by their parental influences. Not only does it demonstrate examples on how parents transform their children’s future, but it also talks about how a child may acquire resilience in bad homes. This book as well aided me in my Passion Project for school by informing me more about my topic. My topic is “Voice Your Choice,” which is a project to help teens have a say in their future and to not allow their parental influences get in the way of what they want to accomplish in life. By talking about different way that a child gains resilience allows me to get a better understanding on how teens can voice their choices.

I would definitely recommend for everyone to read this book because it is interesting and informing at the same time. It can inform formal parents and soon-to-be parents that parenting is the most important job that there is in this world and that whatever that they do can and may transform a child in the future. This book not only can help parents, but also children. It can help them understand that parenting is hard work and many parents try to be great parents, but nobody is perfect. It can also help children that already come from dysfunctional families find the right path and not make the mistakes that their parents did in the past. I give this book a thumbs up.

[Bonnie Randall · Rating 5 out of 5]

"There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way it treats its children."
Scientific Parenting offers powerful theories linking the concept of (childhood) toxic stress to adulthood addiction, broken relationships, obesity, and even late-onset diseases like cancer. The concept of epigenetics is explored and compelling arguments are made that suggest it is our life experiences that do not necessarily change our genetic construct, but certainly influence which genes step forward while others fade into latency.
An illustration of how the complexity of brain architecture is constructed is relayed in a highly readable and often beautifully written style.
Excellent reference book for any helping professional, a volume that may be best served read in conjunction with Dr. Gabor Mate's In The Realm of Hungry Ghosts, When The Body Says No, and he and Dr. Gordon Neufeld's collaboration, Hold On To Your Kids.

[Kristy Garner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting read. I appreciated the Author's explanations of the complex genetics involved and the summaries of many research studies that have been performed.