Stress is ubiquitous in Western society, and particularly in Australian society. Stress is a reflection of the individual being overwhelmed by stimuli which he or she cannot cope with. Most people in our society have, allostatic load, an enormous degree of stress which they cannot cope with. This is contributing towards the high incidence of degenerative disease and depression.

The Gradient of Proneness to Disease and Stress
It is now known that stress stems from early childhood experiences. In fact, recent studies (details of which are enclosed) suggest that it is lack of proper child care during the very early years that inadvertently produces the ever increasing levels of stress in our society.

Carol Bellamy, Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund on the State of the World's Children, in 1999, said, "The greater the care and stimulation a child receives, the greater the benefit, for the national economy as well as the child. The world is finally recognising that children's rights to education, growth and development, physical, cognitive, social, emotional and moral, cannot be met without a comprehensive approach to serving their needs from birth."

It has been found that there is a gradient of proneness to disease, criminal activity and drug and alcohol addiction, which stems from the quality of child rearing in the first twelve months of life. This research emphasises the fact that in the first twelve months of life, the newly born baby undergoes tremendous rewiring of the cortex. What actually happens is that up to 50% of the neuronal mass is actually lost, the newly born baby being born with more than the necessary compliment of neuronal mass to last until adult life.

What is significant is the number of connections that the baby has then to form. The number of connections that are formed depend mainly on the infant's social stimulation.

David Hubbal, who did pioneering work on vision and the brain, concluded that, "Early deprivation of social interaction such as contacts with the mother may lead to mental disturbances that have their counterparts in actual structural abnormalities in the brain."

Things such as whether or not the baby is breast fed, the way the baby is handled, the way the child is taught, and whether or not the child is read to and cuddled, all have a tremendous influence on "wiring" of all perceptual facilities as the child integrates the five senses and creates a pattern of perception and cognition for the future.

Studies have shown that if this kind of nurturing is not available, the child is likely to end up illiterate or delinquent and may end up suffering from depression by the age of thirty.

It has been said that the health and wealth of the nation is not dependent on socio-economic factors alone, but it is paramountly dependent on the way the new generation is being raised. Pre-natal training for parents is equally as important, as is natal care, for the future well being of the children.