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Welcome Teachers ! |
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What’s Brain
Got To Do With It ? |
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leeheymd.com |
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If a
child is not played with, interacted with, nurtured, exposed to stimuli, or
is rarely touched he/she will develop a 25% smaller brain. |
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Experiences
shape and reshape the structure of the brain. |
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By the time a child is 6, his or her brain is 90
to 95 % of adult size. |
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Between age 6 and 12 neurons grow bushier by
each neuron adding dozens of connections based on what is reinforced by
learning and experience. This is why such things as learning a second
language, riding a bike, swimming, learning to play a piano, or to throw a
ball are easier when young and can last a lifetime. |
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Neuron connections peak at 11 in girls and 12 to
13 in boys. |
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Unused connections are further pruned out in the
teen years at the same time the white matter protective coating around
neurons called Myelin Sheath cells increase. |
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The brain is becoming more efficient but also
losing its raw potential for learning and ability to recover from trauma,
drugs, alcohol, or injury. |
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Synapses
that are used often are kept and reinforced. |
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Those
that are not used are lost. |
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How you
spend your time and the experiences you have or don’t have are critical. |
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Although hormones do play an important role and do affect the brain,
the main explanation for the natural lability and moodiness of our teen
years is brain development, or as some would say, the lack of brain development. |
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The part
of the brain that makes teens responsible is still under construction. |
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Brain
development proceeds from back to front and bottom to top. |
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The
Frontal Lobe, which controls impulses, motivation, and judgement is the
last to develop. |
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Teen’s inconsistent Melatonin production
contributes to irregular sleep patterns. |
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One in
three teens who start smoking as a teen will die of a tobacco related
disease. |
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90% of
adult smokers began as teens. |
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Almost 45% of kids who start drinking alcohol by
13 will become alcoholic, while only 10% of those who wait till 21 will. |
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Substance use in youth thus becomes hard wired
in as a tendency for life. This is
in addition to any genetic predisposition. |
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Healthy Subject watching video of using |
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Substance abuser in remission watching video of
using |
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Typically people don’t say, “I think I’ll get a
DUI and ruin lots of lives today.” |
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No one says or thinks, “Gee, today I’m gonna
drink, smoke, or use a drug so I can become an addict.” |
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Twenty-five is the best estimate for when the brain is reasonably
fully mature. |
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Accidents
-primarily motor vehicle, many are substance impaired. |
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Suicide |
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Homicide |
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These 3 account for 75% of all deaths in our
kids. Suicide and homicide are mostly by guns and many are substance
impaired. |
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Safer cars; more opiates abuse |
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Drug related death rate doubled in 10 years. |
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8 states 2005; 12 in ‘05; 16 in ’06; ? ‘09 |
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Cocaine, vicodin, oxycontin, oxycodone,
hydrocodone, etc, methadone, heroin |
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MA, NH, RI, CT, NY, NJ, MD, PA, OH, MI, IL, CO,
NV,OR, UT, WA |
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Vicodin, percodan, percocette, etc |
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Oxycontin
< $1/ mg |
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HEROIN - smoked, foil, $40/gram, IV |
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“Triple C’s”,
“DXM”, Robitussin, dextromethorphan |
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“Salvia”,
“Head”+ some Smoke shops; fake urine, etc |
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ADHD medicine abuse, stimulants |
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Meth, Crystal, methamphetamine |
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Soma, muscle relaxers |
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Ecstasy, “club drugs”, hallucinogens, PCP |
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Hookah, Shisha |
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energy drinks |
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Tobacco kills by far more than all drugs and
alcohol together. |
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Youth drink to get drunk - binge on as much as
possible as fast as possible. |
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60% HS seniors have had intercourse. |
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50% HS seniors drink regularly. |
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25% HS seniors smoke cigarettes. |
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20% HS seniors use other drugs |
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50% teens will try other drugs by end of HS |
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Don’t leave town and leave your teen home alone. |
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Cell phones make “flash” parties possible. |
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Don’t trust sleepovers and campouts. |
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Call other parents. |
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If you’re the host check what’s up. |
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Have your teen wake you up when they come home. |
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Seat belts, air bags, slower speeds, less
passengers, home before midnight, and safer cars save lives. |
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If you want your kids to sleep have them turn in
the phone, game player, and computer an hour before bedtime. |
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Teen’s main source for alcohol and prescription
medicines to abuse is your home and their friends’ homes. |
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If you want your kids to come out of their rooms
keep the electronics out. |
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Internet and gaming are best monitored out of
their bedrooms. |
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2% of us over age 40 smoke marijuana daily. |
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Teens know homes where parents allow or give
alcohol, “weed”, other drugs, or sex to your kids. |
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Say “No”, Don’t try to be the “Cool” parents,
and don’t try to be your kids’ “Best Friends” ! |
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Read the C of C booklet - it’s very useful ! |
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Kevin Leehey M.D. |
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leeheymd.com |
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296-4280 |
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Notes