Praise for THE MYSTERY OF RISK

"Scientifically grounded material provides the reader not only with an understanding of the damage caused by alcohol and other substances to the developing brain and body but also insights into practical and policy matters and the most up-to-date information about FAS, ARND, and ARBD."
- Gregory C. Keck, PhD, author of Adopting the Hurt Child

"Individual patient case studies help bring home the impact of substance exposure to the individual, their family and caregivers, and the hope offered by appropriate evaluation and treatment."
- Rodney Wise, MD, Medicaid Medical Director, Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals

"Resist[s] the single, simple solution of medication alone, behavioral approaches without other supports, or parenting education by itself. The clinical never overwhelms the personal - these are real children and real parents - whose lives are both diminished and enhanced by the responses of 'the system.'"
- Sid Gardner, President, Child and Family Futures

"I highly recommend this book to parents, teachers, psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers and anyone else working with children who may have neurological disabilities. It's packed full of information, positive ideas, and hope.'"
- Bonnie Buxton, co-founder of International Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Awareness Day, author of Damaged Angels

About the Book

Nearly every day we hear troubling stories of “at-risk” children who struggle in school. They act out for attention and misbehave. In the worst cases, they turn to drugs and alcohol or join gangs to find security in a world that seems alien and uncomfortable. But why?

In The Mystery of Risk, Ira J. Chasnoff, MD, provides a startling answer, elucidating what it means to be a child labeled “at-risk,” and showing why preventive, integrated systems of care are desperately needed to help these children. Chasnoff begins in the brain. Drawing on cutting-edge research from the fields of medicine and neuroscience, he shows how a mother’s exposure to toxins such as illicit drugs and alcohol during pregnancy, as well as the child’s experience of trauma and neglect in early life, may damage the child’s developing nervous system. That damage may lead to learning and memory deficiencies and a host of behavioral problems, from chronic temper tantrums in early childhood to acts of physical and sexual violence in later adolescence.

After locating the origins of “risk,” Chasnoff outlines a problem-solving approach to behavior management, providing parents and teachers with medically proven tips and intervention strategies for the home and school. Using skillfully crafted vignettes of real-life clinical cases at the Children’s Research Triangle in Chicago, he reveals how revolving-door-stays in foster homes and the missteps of anxious, ill-tempered parents can prey on the sensitive nervous systems of vulnerable children.

Risk is never simple. Exposure to drugs and alcohol in the womb, early childhood abuse and neglect, out-of-home placements in the child welfare system — all can leave a child deeply wounded. But as Chasnoff writes, “risk is not destiny.” There is hope for children, an alternative to the cycle of school failure, gang activity, and drug abuse, if we are ready to make the investment.

About the Author

IRA J. CHASNOFF, MD is president of Children's Research Triangle and a professor of clinical pediatrics at the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Chicago. He is one of the nation's leading researchers in the field of prenatal exposure to alcohol and illicit drugs and the author of eight books, including Drugs, Alcohol, Pregnancy, and Parenting, which received the Book of the Year Award from the American Journal of Nursing. He lives in Chicago, IL.