This commentary touches upon several controversial issues encountered in the publication of early childhood research. The author identifies the following general challenges: the conflicts of interested faced by researchers affiliated with programs they are researching, the bias unwittingly caused by the "publish-or-perish" imperative, and the preference for new research over verification research. The author then discusses several controversies related specifically to early childhood policymakers' use of knowledge from the field of Neuroscience, specifically on the topic of brain pliability. He identifies challenges to the claims of neuroscience researchers that educational interventions delivered before children's brains are fully formed are more cost-effective than interventions provided after this developmental phase. The commentary also outlines several steps the European Early Childhood Education Research Journal is taking to increase the rigor of articles it puslishes.