Baby Brain : The surprising neuroscience of how pregnancy and motherhood sculpt our brains and change our minds (for the better) Paperback / softback

If you think baby brain is bad for you, think again - because neuroscientist Dr Sarah McKay (author of The Women's Brain Book) has looked at studies and talked to experts from all over the world and the proof is in: giving birth is one of the best things to ever happen to a woman's brain. Moreover, the positive effects of baby brain last well beyond the baby stage - even into old age, with elderly mothers' brains showing resilience to ageing.

Plus, the benefits of baby brain show up for non-birth parents - even fatherhood has a profound effect on the hormones and brains of men. This fascinating book weaves together baby brain research and interviews with neuroscientists and women's health specialists - many of whom are mothers - with personal experiences from parents concerning baby brain, nesting, maternal instinct, social support, anxiety and sleep.

In each aspect the conclusion is clear: having a baby improves a mother's memory, and makes her smarter and more empathetic, intuitive and socially savvy. Baby Brain contains the ultimate good-news story about mothers' brains, backed up by scientific research from leading experts and presented in highly readable bite-sized sections by one of Australia's leading science communicators.