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Briefings
For the first time, a study has confirmed that there are chemical differences in the brain function of dyslexic and non-dyslexic children. that dyslexic children use nearly five times the brain area as normal children while performing a simple language task, the 91̽»¨reported Oct. 6. Dyslexia, a reading disorder, is the most common learning disability, affecting an estimated 5 to15 percent of children (see "Learning Curves," Dec. 1998 Columns). The research also provides new evidence that dyslexia is a brain-based disorder. 91̽»¨researchers used a brain-imaging technique to track the metabolic brain activity of six dyslexic and seven non-dyslexic boys during oral language tasks. "The dyslexics were using 4.6 times as much area of the brain to do the same language task as the controls," says 91̽»¨Radiology Professor Todd Richards. "This means their brains were working a lot harder and using more energy than the normal children." "People often don't see how hard it is for dyslexic children to do a task that others do so effortlessly," adds Education Professor Virginia Berninger, who also led the project. "When a child has a brain-based disorder, it is treatable, although it may not be curable, just as diabetes is. Dyslexia is a lifelong condition, but dyslexics may learn to compensate for it later in life. We know dyslexia is a genetic and neurological disorder. It is not brain damage. Dyslexics often have enormous talents in other parts of their brain and shine in many fields." |
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Dyslexic
Kids' Brains Must Work Five Times Harder