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It's the Milk, Stupid

The true key to intelligence
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THERE IS NO DENYING the evidence. A child's chances of doing well in life are often dictated by what happens in the first few years. Stimulation is everything. No wonder, then, that parents are doing everything they can to provide the right kind of intellectual environment for their infants. So, are there any special diets, games and activities for newborns that will increase their intelligence?

"Not really," says Dr. Chow Chun-bong, a pediatrician at Hong Kong's Princess Margaret Hospital. "The best thing for a child's brain is breast milk. It really is brain food." Babies who are breast-fed have greater motor, social and IQ skills than those on formula, he says. The only way formula is better is if the mother's poor lifestyle (use of drugs, for instance) and diet compromise her health and affect her milk. True, breast milk can be contaminated by air and water pollution, but formula (often made from dehydrated cow's milk) is more often exposed to that kind of problem. Pharmaceutical companies are currently working on formulas that imitate the fatty-acids and nucleotides (components of protein) found in breast milk, but there is nothing on the market that comes close to delivering what mom can provide.

Dr. Chow cautions parents against going overboard with learning exercises. "The best thing for a newborn to learn is that a parent is someone who gives a consistent response," he says. "At this stage, creating a bond with an infant is crucial." For the first six months, babies identify and remember their mothers through smell. Their visual acuity is limited and they probably cannot discern colors until after six months, so those parents who hover over the crib with flash cards are simply wasting their time. "Flash cards will not enhance a baby's memory," says Chow. "In fact, the baby's vision is probably too blurred to see them." 

This is not to say that newborns do not need to be stimulated in a variety of ways. Babies are believed to respond to rhythm and music, so reading simple poems (like nursery rhymes) and playing different sounds are both age-appropriate activities. Closer to six months, babies can remember objects that appear and disappear quickly -- their eyes follow things that are put behind parents' backs or out of sight. They also begin to develop a sense of different weights and textures. Toys that make a noise are also fun and appropriate.

Chow says parents should think of the first six months as a time to prime a baby's brain. There is no need to bombard an infant with stimuli, and there is no evidence to suggest that more stimulation will result in a smarter baby. Most parents have built-in intelligence promoters and what they do instinctively (such as talking in clear, varied tones and playing peek-a-boo, for instance), are the best ways to provide an intelligence-stimulating environment and lay the foundations for a child who likes to learn.


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