It has been pointed out that certain chemically related compounds can induce mental aberration in man and animals which other chemicals can correct. These latter chemicals are capable of modifying the inherent aggression of certain lower animals and of inducing serenity in some humans with disturbances of mentation and behavior. The duration of effects, the long-range consequences, the possibility of habituation remain important unknowns.
Comparisons have been drawn among the three large areas of pediatric interest— Nutrition, Infection, Behavior. These have been dominated in a natural evolutionary sequence by the applied rules of hygiene until such time as precise methods and potent specifics were available. The dawn of these methods in the field of Behavior may be at hand. It is unnecessary to point out the fantastic importance of scientific study of behavior, particularly in children whose habits and human values are being shaped by the learning process. The orthodox, conservative, methodical, dispassionate methods of medical research, combining the talents of clinical and basic science, have brought rich rewards to children in the areas of Nutrition and Infection. There is hope that this same approach, if untrammeled by the fanfare of hucksterism—medical or lay, will sometime in the future bring important rewards in the area of Behavior.
- Copyright © 1957 by the American Academy of Pediatrics