The Science of Mom: A Research-Based Guide to Your Baby’s First Year is a new evidence-based book by Dr. Alice Callahan that uses science to common questions new parents ask in the first year of an infant’s life. I reviewed the first portion of this book last month for Science and Sensibility. I greatly enjoyed Dr. Callahan’s no-nonsense approach and reliance on scientific consensus when discussing different issues, especially vaccinations. Additionally, she identifies gaps in the data and specifically discusses how proper study design may help resolve remaining issues.

Given Dr. Callahan’s background in nutrition and fetal physiology, I was particularly interested in reading her comments on beginning solid foods. Some of the recommendations were surprising to me, such as the benefits of feeding meat, especially liver, to babies. She also does an excellent job discussing the current literature on food allergies and timing of food introduction. Overall, I found the honest, open, and un-judgmental tone throughout the book refreshing in the collection of parenting books.

Below is an interview I did with Dr. Callahan about the impetus behind her new book, how she defines scientific consensus, how she chose her  book content, her future projects, and how science and parenting intertwine in her life.

 

 

 

 

 

Interview with Dr. Callahan about her new book “Science of Mom”

 

 

 

 

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