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"Day care is bad for babies"
- Author and Psychologist Steve Biddulph Steve Biddulph is an influential author, activist and psychologist from Australia who has written many influential books and speaks word wide on such topics. Some of Biddulph's books include: Raising Babies, The Secret of Happy Children, Love, Laughter and Parenting: In The Precious Years from Birth to 6, Secrets to a Happy Family, Raising Boys, Raising Girls, Parenting with Spirit: 30 Ways to Enrich Your Family's Life, and many more..
In his book, Raising Babies- Should Under 3's Go To Day Care?, a book published in England, Mr. Biddulph argues that this growing international body of work combined with neurobiological research clearly suggests that at least during the first two years of life, brain development unfolds at its optimum with one-to-one care. This care could be from mother, father, a loving relative or if necessary, a single, attentive paid care giver such as a Nanny. He also notes that institutional childcare is often inadequate and largely undesirable for babies due in part to the care giver to child ratio.
Significant among the realms of research are the so-called cortisol studies, which measured the presence of stress hormones in young babies and consistently found these levels to be HIGHER in children in long day situations. These have been linked with greater aggression and anxiety found in older children in long day care but are also known to affect the development of a range of neurotransmitters, whose pathways in the brain are still being built. These permanent brain changes are now thought by scientists and psychiatrists to affect the way the child will react to STRESS, ANXIETY and negative feeling in later life. "This book presents much objective evidence, but also carries a strong professional opinion for which I don't apologize," writes Biddulph.
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