Environmental enrichment and brain development

Sale, Alessandro; Berardi, Nicoletta; Maffei, Lamberto

doi:10.1002/9781118931684.ch1

Cited by 9 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 121 publications

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“…When a control group is used in human studies, it often involves children who are enrolled in another type of therapy or intervention program (such is the case with many studies on Head Start, Rosenzweig, 2002 ; and SIT, Lang et al, 2012 ). In addition, animals experiencing enriched environments in the laboratory are typically able to explore and interact with their environment without fear from predators and other risks associated with life in the wild ( Sale et al, 2016 ), while children are not necessarily exempt from fear and/or stress in their broader environment during their exposure to enrichment programs.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Pre-weaned pups will stay in or near the nest and will become more interactive with their environment post-weaning. While it may look as though enriched environments are simply more similar to naturalistic settings for rats, the beneficial effects seen in enriched animals may go beyond those attributable to restoration of typical living conditions in the normally-deprived lab rat ( Sale et al, 2016 ). These benefits may in part be due to the fact that enriched animals are free to explore their environment without fear of predators.…”

Section: Origins Of Interest In Enriched Environmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Though little is known about the effects of environmental enrichment on human development ( Sale et al, 2016 ), there have been a growing number of studies on the potential use of enriched environments on children with NDDs. Below, we review the literature on the use of developmental animal models and human studies that use enriched environment as a compensatory mechanism for NDDs, focusing specifically on ASD, ADHD, and FXS, as these disorders have been most frequently targeted for treatment with environmental enrichment and studied in animal models.…”

Section: Origins Of Interest In Enriched Environmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Enriched Environments as a Potential Treatment for Developmental Disorders: A Critical Assessment

2019

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The beneficial effects of enriched environments have been established through a long history of research. Enrichment of the living conditions of captive animals in the form of larger cages, sensory stimulating objects, and opportunities for social interaction and physical exercise, has been shown to reduce emotional reactivity, ameliorate abnormal behaviors, and enhance cognitive functioning. Recently, environmental enrichment research has been extended to humans, in part due to growing interest in its potential therapeutic benefits for children with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). This paper reviews the history of enriched environment research and the use of enriched environments as a developmental intervention in studies of both NDD animal models and children. We argue that while environmental enrichment may sometimes benefit children with NDDs, several methodological factors need to be more closely considered before the efficacy of this approach can be adequately evaluated, including: (i) operationally defining and standardizing enriched environment treatments across studies; (ii) use of control groups and better control over potentially confounding variables; and (iii) a comprehensive theoretical framework capable of predicting when and how environmental enrichment will alter the trajectory of NDDs.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Origins Of Interest In Enriched Environmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Origins Of Interest In Enriched Environmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Enriched Environments as a Potential Treatment for Developmental Disorders: A Critical Assessment

2019

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“…Studies using rodents have shown experience-dependent plasticity as a result of enriched environments. These can have both structural and functional benefits for the adult brain (Sale, Berardi, & Maffei, 2016). One key component of these enriched environments is physical exercise.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Visual plasticity and exercise revisited: No evidence for a “cycling lane”

et al. 2019

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Experiments using enriched environments have shown that physical exercise modulates visual plasticity in rodents. A recent study (Lunghi & Sale, 2015) investigated whether exercise also affects visual plasticity in adult humans. The plastic effect they measured was the shift in ocular dominance caused by 2 hr of monocular deprivation (e.g., by an eye patch). They used a binocular rivalry task to measure this shift. They found that the magnitude of the shift was increased by exercise during the deprivation period. This effect of exercise was later disputed by a study that used a different behavioral task (Zhou, Reynaud, & Hess, 2017). Our goal was to determine whether the difference in task was responsible for that study's failure to find an exercise effect. We set out to replicate Lunghi and Sale (2015). We measured ocular dominance with a rivalry task before and after 2 hr of deprivation. We measured data from two conditions in 30 subjects. On two separate days, they either performed exercise or rested during the deprivation period. Contrary to the previous study, we find no significant effect of exercise. We hypothesize that exercise may affect rivalry dynamics in a way that interacts with the measurement of the deprivation effect.

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“…In the early ages, environmental experiences and parent–child interactions are very important because the development of prefrontal cortex and cognitive abilities is directly related to these experiences. 23–32 Nelson et al. have shown that the peak in the formation of new synapses is about 15 months, and survival or pruning of these nerve connections is determined by the frequency of their activation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of parent–child interaction training on children who are excessively exposed to digital devices: A pilot study

Sadeghi

Pouretemad

Khosrowabadi

et al. 2019

Int J Psychiatry Med

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Objective In the last decade, the use of digital devices among children has increased. This study examines the effects of parent–child interaction training on the amount of time children use digital devices, conflict and closeness in parent–child relationships, executive functions, and the electroencephalogram absolute power in children who excessively use the digital devices. Method The sample group consisted of 12 children (24 to 47 months) who spent more than half of their waking hours using digital devices. Parents were trained to intensive interaction with the child for two months. Electroencephalogram absolute power, parent–child interaction, the amount of time children use digital devices, and children’s executive function skills were assessed. Results Parent–child intensive interaction reduces the use of digital devices; decrease the conflicts and increase the closeness in parent–child relationships; decrease executive functioning problems; and increase the absolute power of alpha and alpha 2 (F3), beta 1 (F3), and beta and beta 2 (F3, Fp2). Conclusion These findings provide evidence of the negative effects of the excessive use of digital devices in children, the importance of parent–child interaction, and its positive impacts on cognitive and brain functions in children. It might contribute to better understand the importance of parent–child interaction in the early years.

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Environmental enrichment and brain development

Cited by 9 publications

References 121 publications

Enriched Environments as a Potential Treatment for Developmental Disorders: A Critical Assessment

Enriched Environments as a Potential Treatment for Developmental Disorders: A Critical Assessment

Visual plasticity and exercise revisited: No evidence for a “cycling lane”

Effects of parent–child interaction training on children who are excessively exposed to digital devices: A pilot study

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