The COVID-19 virus has brought with it many theories since the day it entered our lives. Chief among these was that it caused permanent damage to the human body. Now, we can say that these damages are now visible. In the past days, we talked about the reduction of gray matter in our brain with the effect of the virus and what gray matter is.
In addition to many effects of the virus, the effects of the vaccines we have on pregnant women were also explained and it was reported that the studies on these effects were continued. Today, a study on babies born during the COVID-19 period has once again brought to light the alarming effects of the virus. So, what kind of problems does the COVID-19 virus cause in newborn babies? Let’s see together…
They have difficulties in cognitive activities and speaking
Research by Brown University researchers and a non-governmental organization focused on early language development, COVID It exposed the alarming effects of -19 on children. Researchers using Luna’s ‘speech counter’ device in the studies conducted jointly by the two research groups placed the device on the children and listened to their conversations during the day. The collected data justified this opinion of the families who expressed their concerns about the development of their children. It was observed that the children’s reactions to what they heard during the day were much lower than normal.
You know that we imitate what we hear, especially during the first periods of learning to speak, and this is how we actually learn to speak. However, the research shows that; Children born during COVID-19 are much less responsive to what they hear than children born before the virus. Researchers noticed this in March 2020, when a group of children slowed down cognitive tests in the lab. The researchers, who were suspicious of this situation they encountered, had not been able to clearly determine the effect of the virus on children until today. Now, it has been clarified what the effects of the virus might be, and it has been found that children born during the virus are slower to speak.
So what is the source of these problems?
We have just talked about the reduction of gray matter in our brain due to COVID-19. The central nervous system of our brain is divided into two parts, gray and white matter. gray matter; It is located in the hippocampus part of our brain and helps us to control our thoughts and behaviors. White matter, on the other hand, consists of neural networks and allows our brain to transmit information. The effect of COVID-19 on children is precisely due to the effect of white matter in their brains.
Researchers explained that the virus directly reduces the rate of development of white matter in children’s brains. For this reason, children gain the ability to speak much later than before the virus and react much later to what is spoken. Experts recommend that parents communicate with their children frequently to reduce these effects. It is also underlined that the importance of the brain development process, especially until the first three years of age, and that it may be much more difficult to correct speech difficulties in later ages.
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