Researchers comparing babies born between 2008 and 2011 to those born during the pandemic have determined that lockdown and mask mandates stunted their speech development.
Pandemic babies were less likely to say their first words before their first birthday, Daily Mail reported. “They were also less likely to wave ‘bye’ or point at objects,” with facial masks holding the blame for limiting their ability to read facial expressions. They also were behind on mastering simple block-stacking skills.
SOURCE:
Daily Mail October 11, 2022