Q&A with a learning disability expert

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(CNN) -- CNN anchors Leon Harris and Fredricka Whitfield asked Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta to tackle an issue Thursday morning that affects roughly 4 million American kids -- learning disabilities. How can you identify them and what can you do about them once you figure out if your child has one? Gupta invited Dr. Sheldon Horowitz of the National Center for Learning Disabilities to help answer e-mailed questions.

GUPTA: Early testing, that is the key. Don't wait. Isn't that right, Dr. Horowitz?

HOROWITZ: That is absolutely correct. The issue of learning disabilities evaluation is something that school districts can engage in and help parents out with, but early screening is also something that you can do with very young children, even as early as 4 years old.

GUPTA: Go ahead and bring up the first question.

Q: "At what age can children actually be tested for dyslexia? I was told that my son couldn't be tested until he was in second or third grade."

HOROWITZ: One of the problems with the evaluation process is that school districts and the education laws are set up to evaluate children once they meet a certain threshold. They have to reach a certain level of failure.

Q: "If [a] learning disability is suspected or confirmed, how do you go about explaining this to the child without ruining whatever self-esteem the child has?"

HOROWITZ: I think it is very important to help children understand that learning disabilities are something that you have, and not something that you are. Everybody has difficulties in some areas. Some people remember numbers better than other children. Some people read more easily. Some people learn new information more easily. Everyone has some difficulties, but I think if the child understands that a learning disability can be viewed as a island of weakness in a sea of strengths, it will go a long way of helping the child and his self-esteem.

Q: "My 17-year-old son is dyslexic, and every year I have to educate his teachers. Why is the education profession so resistant to applying new information about how the brain works?"

HOROWITZ: I think the answer to this question is really that every year, both in school and throughout a child's career, the child needs to be better able, with the family's help, of course, to be able to self-inform the people around him or her to know what his or her learning issues and challenges and needs are. That child should be able to go and say to a teacher or to an employer or to a colleague or friend that here are my learning issues, this is what I need to be able to succeed and let's just move on.

WHITFIELD: Dr. Gupta, how does the brain work ... when pertaining to that very question?

GUPTA: There are a lot of theories about why learning disabilities occur. And there's no question that it is probably due to a lot of different factors. There are some things that we know for sure -- for instance, alcohol exposure early in the fetus even. But it appears to some structural and functional parts to the brain that don't seem to be working as well. ... A lot of things probably happen even before the child is even born.

Q: "My son is 2 1/2 and has not started to talk yet. He's hyperactive and does not sit and play. He's always busy doing something. Does it mean that he is a slow learner and needs some special education?"

HOROWITZ: At 2 1/2, it is too soon it say whether or not a child is even at risk for learning disabilities. Lots of children are overactive. Many children develop language skills at different rates. Certainly, there are differences between boys and girls. I would stay in very close in contact with your pediatricians.

Q: "Our 8-year-old son has some of the symptoms of a learning disorder and is attending Sylvan Learning Centers with much success. However, it is getting very expensive. What other recourses would you recommend for learning disorders for children and adults?"

HOROWITZ: Many families look outside of school for assistance in knowing how to work with children with learning disabilities. The kinds of things that the organizations and some of the associations that work with children on the outside offer are targeted, well-thought-out, focused instruction. Those are the kinds of things that you can import at home and do also with your child.

Q: "Are there tests for adults for learning disabilities? I cannot spell. I've had trouble all my life. I'm 57. I put letters in the wrong place."

HOROWITZ: Learning disabilities are a life-long condition. It is not something you grow out of. It is not something that disappears over time. The kinds of questions that we ask of young children and of school-age children are precisely the same kinds of issues that we look at in adults. So the evaluation protocol looks very much the same.