Search Results for: blog the nature theory

The Pregnancy Blog Week in Review for August 5-12

The Pregnancy Blog is a great source of information for everything from trying to conceive a baby up to the birth and the early postpartum period. Whether this is your first or fifth baby, you will find something interesting or new in our archives. The Week in Review offers a synopsis of the blogs posted this week. If you are pregnant, you may have heard that you shouldn’t change the litter box. You may be wondering exactly why this is harmful. What is Toxoplasmosis? answers questions about this infection and how to avoid coming in contact with it. Morning sickness … Continue reading →

Nature or Nurture Theory Correct?

So which determines a child’s personality nature or nurture? Overall scientists and psychologists agree that nature and nurture both play a role in how a person behaves. Links between genes and behavior do exist. But just because the gene is present doesn’t guarantee the behavior will occur. Likewise the child who is raised in an abusive home doesn’t necessarily become an abuser. A person who has a genetic predisposition towards anger will have to work harder to control that anger. But if they are raised in a good environment, by parents who help them learn anger management, they can overcome … Continue reading →

The Nurture Theory

The debate about what determines a child’s personality has been waging for years. Supporters of the nature theory believe that genetics determine personality. While supporters of the nurture theory do believe that physical traits are inherited they believe that is where the genetic influence ends. The Nurture Theory: Environment Those that support nurture feel that children are like a clean slate and the experiences they have in life and people who influence them determine what is written upon the slate. Genetics may play a role in deciding personality traits, but ultimately environmental factors determine who we become. The list below … Continue reading →

The Nature Theory

Nature versus nurture is a debate about how children learn and develop. Are we predetermined to act a certain way based upon our genetic makeup or does our environment completely determine who we become? It is generally accepted that traits like eye color, height, and hair color are determined by a person’s genes and inherited from their parents. But how much does heredity influence things like intelligence, personality, aggression, shyness, and other non-physical traits? The Nature Theory: Genetics Those that support the nature theory believe that heredity determines not only a child’s physical traits but everything else as well. Children … Continue reading →

Let Them Eat Chocolate

I’ve confessed to my “Mommy addiction” in previous posts. It’s not Downton Abbey, Facebook or expensive leather handbags (though, I wouldn’t balk if Santa happened to leave a Hermes Birkin bag under the tree this Christmas). Rather, my obsession is much higher in calories: Nature Valley Dark Chocolate Granola Thins. A.K.A. Crunchy crack. Crispy, chocolatey, OOOOHHH-EMMM-GEEE! drool-on-your-keyboard crack. Don’t let the name fool you; the granola part is just a guise. The fact is; I’m all about the chocolate. I love me some chocolate… and so does my 8-year-old. Unfortunately, as parents we’re supposed to set good examples, so eating … Continue reading →

Your Ancestor Might Have Been a Neanderthal

Posted on by

If your family is somewhat unrefined, you may have joked that you descended from Neanderthals. It turns out that there is some truth to this concept after all. More and more, genealogy has been incorporating what has been learned about genetics, and the human genome, in order to determine family relationships. The scientific name for Neanderthals is Homo neanderthalensis. Modern humans have the scientific name Homo sapiens sapiens. Neanderthals were not the dumb, clumsy, cavemen that you might picture them as. They had the gene for language. They were able to produce music and art. The creation of their tools … Continue reading →

Privacy vs. Secrecy: How to Foster Intimacy in Your Relationships

Information really is power; how, what, and when to share can have a far-reaching impact on our ability to foster intimacy in our relationships. It is almost a rite of passage, for instance, for a new couple to explore one another’s past—first loves, first kisses, and even the first big heartbreak. These conversations both require and build a significant level of trust, as they reveal how we act and react at our most vulnerable moments. So what does it mean when your partner refuses to share? It can mean many things; the problem, of course, is that we often assume … Continue reading →

Signs a Marriage is in Trouble?

After 28 years of marriage, Mel Gibson and his wife Robyn are getting divorced and it seems everyone has an opinion about it. That comes with the price of being famous, I guess. But the truth is despite rumors and gossip, columnists and opinions of his fans, none of us know what their marriage was really like, any more than you really know want your next door neighbor’s marriage or marriages of friends or family are like. Similarly no-one really knows what your marriage is really like. Or do they? The reality is that we only see the tip of … Continue reading →

A Blue Home May Make You Lose Weight

If you find yourself hungry all of the time, consider painting and accessorizing with blue. Experts tell us that the color has real influence over our appetites. Blue kitchens, blue dining rooms, blue tablecloths, blue plates and blue napkins can help us fee full. How does this work? A color theory professor explains that our brains are turned off by the association of the color blue and food. Food generally does not come in blue (even blueberries are mostly purple). When food is blue in nature, it generally means that the food is spoiled with mold and may contain harmful … Continue reading →

Baby’s Gender Linked to Diet

Are your children more of one gender than the other? Are you hoping specifically for a boy or a girl? New research says that your diet may have something to do with the sex of your baby! And in some developed countries, the proportion of boys is actually falling due to dietary changes. While I often laugh at gender prediction kits, quizzes, and advice, this is one study that actually has some science behind it, so it got my attention. Having had four pregnancies in which three of the pregnancies resulted in boy fetuses and only one in a girl, … Continue reading →