Covid Lockdowns “Stopped Babies Learning How to Speak”
Covid lockdowns have been linked to a surge in babies and toddlers suffering from speech and other developmental issues, the largest study to date has found
The Telegraph has more.
Experts from the University of Edinburgh examined at the impact of successive lockdowns and social distancing measures on more than a quarter of a million babies and toddlers.
They found that the number of children with at least one developmental issue increased by up to 6.6 percent between March 2020 and August 2021 – the period in which the first lockdown began and ended.
Around one in 10 children in the UK has a developmental concern, which can include issues regarding their behaviour, emotional regulation, social skills or movement.
The authors of the report said the rise could be linked to “reduced social interaction and reduced attendance at early learning and childcare settings” during the period, which play an “important role in children’s development”. …
The latest research explored the scale of damage to the development of those yet to start school, with 18 months of restrictions coinciding with an increase in developmental issues, including speech and communication, behaviour and problem-solving.
The research included about 258,000 children aged 13 to 15 months and 27 to 30 months in Scotland, where restrictions were the same as in the rest of the UK.
This accounted for 80 percent of the children in the country, and they were tracked between January 2019 and August 2023 to give pre and post-lockdown trends.
The study was the largest analysis of data assessing Covid restrictions on child developmental outcomes in Europe.
Researchers found that the proportion of children with developmental concerns remained higher than pre-pandemic levels even after restrictions ended in August 2021.
Of particular concern was the proportion of children aged 13 to 15 months with issues continuing to rise even after lockdowns ended.
Among those aged 27 to 30 months, the trend stopped increasing but remained above pre-pandemic levels, researchers said.
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