Movement is the Medicine Podcast’s Post

Studies show that students with ADHD have low astrocyte-produced lactic acid in the brain, and that movement can help compensate, by increasing both lactic acid production and transporter activity! In grad school, I was the student standing at the back of the class. I couldn’t sit still for hours like everyone else could. To this day, I’m the one doing push-ups or some makeshift exercise in the bathroom of the airplane or office or wherever I am. Sometimes this is to put a joint back in place (as I sublux due to EDS), but sometimes it’s just because my body NEEDS to move. Teachers, creating movement opportunities in your classrooms is vital for learning! Employers, keep your office active!!!! NASA researcher Joan Vernikos changed the way we think about chairs (her work pushed the stand-sit desk and the importance of movement breaks) with her studies on how gravity affects the body: and that’s just the external component! Our brains and bodies are more connected than we know (indeed, the brain is an integral part of the body). Movement is medicine, and students who move may simply be self-medicating. #accessforall #education #handsonlearning

explanation of the article about teens' transcendent thinking and its impact on brain growth: 1. **Introduction**: The article talks about how teenagers' ability to think beyond immediate situations, called transcendent thinking, influences their brain development. 2. **Key Findings**: - **Impact on Brain Networks**: Transcendent thinking enhances coordination between two important brain networks: the executive control network (for focused thinking) and the default mode network (for internal reflection). - **Predictive of Developmental Milestones**: Teens who engage in transcendent thinking show better brain network coordination growth, leading to positive outcomes like identity development and life satisfaction. - **Educational and Mental Health Implications**: Encouraging teens to explore complex perspectives and emotions can positively affect their brain development and well-being, suggesting the need for educational approaches supporting such thinking. 3. **Study Details**: - Researchers at USC studied high school students' responses to global teen stories. - They conducted brain scans on these students over two years and followed up with them for another three years into young adulthood. - The study found that teens who frequently engaged in transcendent thinking showed increased brain network coordination over time, leading to positive developmental outcomes. 4. **Brain Growth and Developmental Milestones**: - Teens who engaged more in transcendent thinking showed brain growth over time compared to themselves two years earlier. - This brain growth predicted important developmental milestones like identity development in late adolescence and life satisfaction in young adulthood. 5. **Implications**: - The findings suggest the importance of promoting transcendent thinking in education and for adolescent mental health. - Encouraging teens to engage with complex perspectives and emotions can play a crucial role in their brain development and overall well-being. 6. **Conclusion**: - The study highlights the significant role teens play in their own brain development through how they interpret and understand the world around them. Overall, the research underscores the importance of encouraging teenagers to think deeply about social issues and personal experiences, as it positively impacts their brain development and future well-being.

As children become teenagers, their brains grow and change. Adolescence is a pivotal period of growth, not just physically but neurologically! 🌈 Understanding the intricacies of brain development during these formative years is crucial. In my latest blog post, I dive into the fascinating world of adolescent brain development, exploring the impacts on behavior, decision-making, and overall well-being. 🔗 Dive into the complete guide on my website: https://lnkd.in/dc3J9-tq Let's empower parents, educators, and anyone involved in the lives of adolescents with insights that foster a supportive environment for their cognitive and emotional growth. 🌱💡 Follow us Dr. Abhishek Pasari MyShishu™️ for most and more. #parenting #blogs #commentforbetterreach #webinar #gmt

New research shows COVID-19 lockdowns caused faster brain ageing in #adolescents, with #girls’ brains appearing 4.2 years older and #boys’ 1.4 years older. This highlights the need for ongoing mental health support for #youth post-pandemic. 💡🧒👧 #YouthSupport #Adolescent #Development #Research #Wellbeing #Neuroscience #children https://lnkd.in/gmK4fWmC

What a triumph! 23rd April the ‘Neurodivergent conditions screening and teacher training bill,’ is officially being introduced. Hoorah! Finally. I have been thinking a lot about what needs to happen before we have the screenings. Surely teacher Neurodivergent conditions screening first before students?’Surely, teacher training first before any screenings? Lets empower teachers, enrich and nourish them. Give them, the people that stand in front of our future generations for 8 hours a day the opportunity to grow, to learn and thrive. Let them come to terms and learn about their own differences, about their own neurology before they can help, support, teach students in a way they need. Let’s look at growing awareness in our teachers of themselves, what dysregulates their nervous system, what regulates and what motivates them? Let’s redefine difference too, difference from what, from who? Let’s build better language around difference, consider instead connection, practising inclusion and belonging. Disordered and deficient are outdated. #ADHD #ASD #DYSLEXIA #neurology #inclusion #education #studentvoice #teachersvoice #nothingforuswithoutus https://lnkd.in/eBnKA5yY

“Notably, 92.1% of CYP currently experiencing School Distress were described as neurodivergent (ND) and 83.4% as autistic.” Connolly SE, Constable HL, Mullally SL. School distress and the school attendance crisis: a story dominated by neurodivergence and unmet need. Front Psychiatry. 2023 Sep 22;14:1237052. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1237052. PMID: 37810599; PMCID: PMC10556686. #SchoolDistress #SchoolRefusal #Autism #Neurodivergence #RighttoEducation #HumanRightsAct https://lnkd.in/dYB-waQm

During #adolescence, the brain undergoes a key process known as pruning, which typically starts between ages 10 to 12. This process involves removing extra neurons and connections to make the brain more efficient. While pruning helps the brain become better at thinking and learning, it can also affect emotions. As the brain refines its pathways, adolescents might experience heightened #emotions and #mood_swings. This is because the areas of the brain responsible for emotional regulation and decision-making are still developing. The changes can make feelings more intense and reactions more unpredictable. 𝑼𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒑𝒓𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑𝒔 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒘𝒉𝒚 𝒂𝒅𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒎𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒎 𝒆𝒙𝒕𝒓𝒂 𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒐𝒓 𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 as they navigate these important developmental changes. #EmotionalChanges #EmotionalDevelopment #Brain #UnderstandingTeens

Communication from birth to 3 months is crucial for a child’s cognitive development. During this early phase, babies begin to explore their world through multiple modes of communication, such as eye contact, facial expressions, vocalizations like cooing, and even physical movements. These early interactions are key in building the brain's capacity for language, problem-solving, and social connection. By recognizing and responding to these signals, caregivers and early interventionists can foster healthy cognitive development and lay a strong foundation for lifelong learning. Supporting these early milestones helps bridge the gap between emotional bonding and language development, ensuring each child reaches their full potential. What are some important evidence based strategies we can use to help promote communication and cognitive development at this early stage of life? Face-to-Face Interaction: Engage your baby by holding them close and making eye contact. Talking or singing softly helps babies associate sound with emotion and facial cues, enhancing their understanding of language. Imitation Games: Mimicking your baby’s coos, gurgles, and facial expressions encourages turn-taking, an early communication skill that forms the basis of conversation. Both these strategies ca be eaily implement during everyday routines. Strategies can be incorporated during feeding, whether bottle or breastfeeding. Caregivers can talk and use simple signs with their baby during this time. Diaper changes are also a great opportunity to implement these techniques. Any moment when you are face-to-face and close proximity to the baby is a perfect chance to engage in these communication-building activities. In my upcoming book, Early Interventionist Guide to Early Childhood Development, you'll discover key developmental milestones and evidence-based activities and strategies to support parents and caregivers during your therapy sessions as an early interventionist.  #EarlyChildhoodDevelopment #CommunicationMilestones #CognitiveGrowth #EarlyIntervention

Brainable™, created by the Women's Brain Health Initiative (WBHI), addresses youth's rising mental health issues by educating them on brain health and harmful behaviours. The program covers essential topics like nutrition, physical activity, sleep, and the negative impact of excessive social media use on sleep and well-being. By empowering students with knowledge and practical skills, Brainable™ fosters healthier lifestyles and mental resilience. Proven successful through positive feedback and overwhelming demand, continued funding is crucial to expand the program and benefit more students, promoting a healthier future generation. For a more detailed understanding of the program's impact and the critical need for its continuation, please read the White Paper on Brainable™. This document provides comprehensive insights and data supporting the program's effectiveness and necessity.

Articles and research like this are interesting, but to me, they are missing the big picture by focusing on one detail. The education, health and social care systems in England are currently in a chronic state of crisis. The failures in one area are significantly impacting other areas. The impact on children, parents, carers, and schools on the frontline is frightening. I have two children under the age of 13 who have expressed suicidal thoughts - so traumatised are they by their educational experience, and the long delays to get any appropriate assessments and support. Waiting lists run into years - which when you're a child is a significant chunk of your life! Constant delays cause regular additional problems, which then need to be addressed, causing further strain on the system. - Record numbers of isolations and temporarily exclusions. - Record low attendances. - Record high 'behavioural issues'. - Record numbers of educators leaving the profession. - Record numbers of parents prosecuted for non-attendance. - Record numbers of children await EHC needs assessments. - Record waiting lists for neurodevelopmental assessments. - Record numbers of children being home educated because of inadequate state provision. I'm sure the list could go on. It's also very much a postcode lottery. Quite a gender biased article here 'girls chat endlessly and share their emotions' - erm, not my daughter! Opposite happened during and after lockdown. The problem is, particularly for children and young people it isn't just COVID - it is a complex web of issues that were already there pre-pandemic, and issues that persist post-pandemic. The main difference between the adult world and the children's world from my perspective is that the adult 'real world' has leaped forward - technology use, hybrid working, increased flexibility etc. Some of that has since been rolled back, but there has still been a very significant shift in the world of work. Education by comparison has stood still, in fact tried to roll itself further backwards to some bygone age where children were seen and not heard. A Victorian-era evoking age, where uniform details are more important than learning, where children and parents are berated for various things, where educators are exhausted and drained of motivation, energy and a zest for educating and teaching. Where testing of everything tells us precisely nothing of substance. Where children learn about bygone ages but don't learn about how their own government operates. And SEN students suffer the most. #ActuallyAutistic #Bipolar #ADHD #Dyslexia #Covid #SENDCrisis #WSPD2024