Children born in pandemic have poorer communication skills, study finds

Two young children in Glasgow during lockdown. Research has shown babies born during the pandemic performed well with motor skills and problem solving but less so with communication. Photograph: Katherine Anne Rose/The Observer

At the age of two, babies born during the pandemic have similar behaviour and development compared with children who were born before Covid-19 arrived – with one exception. Their communication skills lag behind those of their predecessors.

These are the intriguing findings of a study – carried out by researchers based at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) – which examined what life was like for babies born during the pandemic, and the implications for their health and development.