Speech Delays

What Causes Speech or Language Delays? A speech delay might be due to.....

Physical Impairment:

• ​Cleft lip or palate: This is something a child is born with and is usually found before birth and at birth. Sometimes, a palate may appear intact, but with careful inspection may not be fully formed.
• Ankyloglossia (tongue tie): A short frenulum (the fold beneath the tongue), limits tongue movement 

Motor Planning Impairment: 

• Impaired motor planning difficulty: This cognitive condition, usually referred to as Childhood Apraxia of Speech, results in difficulty controlling the muscles and parts of the mouth used for speaking (i.e. lips, tongue, or jaw).  

Hearing Impairments:

• Either caused by frequent ear infections or hearing loss 

General Developmental Delays:

• A speech delay is most commonly related to other developmental delays. A child with developmental delays will often have difficulty reaching motor, verbal and cognitive milestones on time. 
• The cause of developmental delays however can be hard to pinpoint, but are usually attributed to genetics or a child's environment. Genes however have been shown to turn on and off based on environmental triggers.
  • Environmental triggers that can affect a child's development include things like exposure to toxins, illnesses, head injures, and infections. 
    • The child's environment can be affected as early as within the womb (pre-natal), but can also be attributed to peri-natal (during birth) complications, such as cord asphyxiation, or post-natal (after birth), such as head injury, malnutrition, or toxin exposure.