The mask responsible for a language delay? These shrinks alert

Several French and Chinese researchers, as well as child psychiatrists and psychologists, warn about the harmful effects of adult masks on the language development of children.

Children develop and acquire language by seeing the adults around them express themselves, but how are the younger ones doing now? Mouth and emotions concealed, babies have not communicated in the same way since the covid-19 pandemic.

This is reported by more than a hundred child psychiatrists, psychologists, doctors and psychomotor therapists who denounce an "announced catastrophe", in a column written by the neuropsychiatrist Boris Cyrulnik, published in Le Figaro, on March 8, 2021. “Let's not confuse adaptation and resilience: children live and progress despite the difficulties, but each obstacle to their development has a cost, whether in terms of delay, neglected sectors or emotional weight”, alert the signatories.

Well-founded concerns

Adverse effects already highlighted in a Chinese study published in June 2020, which shows that the SARS epidemic of 2003 would have had negative results on the development of nearly 15,000 children from 0 to 15 years old, including language delays , motor and social. In January 2021, the University of Grenoble also published the results of a survey of 600 early childhood professionals, who fear that wearing a mask has an impact on language acquisition, especially among children under 18 months, and on the socio-emotional attitudes of young children. Indeed, they would have observed poorer language interactions as well as more crying and more anxiety.

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Measures to fight against these phenomena

Health professionals lament that the government has not given thought to “More proportionate measures vis-à-vis the population under 3 years old”. However, the report on the importance of the first 1000 days of the child called for proposals to support children, parents and childcare professionals.

To fight against these harmful effects, the authors of the column entitled “Babies facing masks: chronicle of an announced disaster” propose four measures:

  • A right to priority vaccination for early childhood staff.
  • Of moments without a mask outside, in outdoor spaces, with social distancing to respect. “These times would be entered in the schedule as soon as the weather permits, and for all sections. They could be held once every half day ".
  • Moments without a mask inside when the adult is alone with the child.
  • Encourage professionals to physically separate from each other, as soon as possible. “This organizational standard – dividing the children into small groups, provided the premises allow – is already good practice. But it would be a question of going further by applying it systematically when the context allows it: this point could be the subject of working groups, as soon as possible ”.

Through this forum, the signatories hope that these measures of "common sense" go “Reconcile health constraints and capital needs” of the youngest.

Suruthi SRIKUMAR

Suruthi is a writer for the Aufeminin, Parole de Mamans and Avis de Mamans websites.
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