What does it mean that there are vitamins that aid in speech development? We will learn more about this by reading this article.
The first words of the child undoubtedly occupy a special place among the parents, and delayed speech generates some anxiety for them, and before addressing the presence of vitamins that help the child to speak, we must note that they can be an auxiliary part of the treatment, but a specialist doctor must be consulted. Read the following article to learn about these vitamins and to receive the proper care:
Vitamins help the child to speak: what is the truth?
Speech delay is sometimes associated with a child with autism, and it has been shown in a study that some vitamins may help children with autism and speech delay to pronounce, but the effectiveness of these vitamins can differ in children with speech delay for other reasons, which can be a natural condition where its benefit is likely to be limited The following vitamins can help the child speak and can also help them focus and remember better:
- Vitamin B12
In the aforementioned study, it was discovered that giving this vitamin to children with autism in addition to folic acid helped improve one of the functions of cells in autistic patients. This improvement in cell function helped the child's expressive communication and receptive language, as well as some other autism symptoms.
- Folinic acid
It is produced using folic acid. Taking folic acid during pregnancy helps reduce the risk of autism, while taking folinic acid has been shown to help children improve speech and develop the ability to communicate verbally.
- Vitamin D
It is one of the vitamins that help the child to speak, as its deficiency in the child is associated with an increased risk of autism, which could be one of the reasons for delayed speech. The child's symptoms may also get better after taking the right amounts of vitamin D.
Other nutritional supplements help the child to speak
After learning about a group of vitamins that aid in speech development, we present to you some additional dietary supplements that will also benefit the child in the following areas:
- Essential fatty acids
Omega 3 and Omega 6, where the deficiency of each of them is linked to the child’s speech delay and other diseases, such as: developmental delay, hyperactivity disorder and attention deficit, and it is possible that consuming Omega 3 in particular helps to improve the child’s ability to speak with the need to be careful in choosing pure types of it .
- Amino acids and proteins
Among them is L-carnosine, which helped improve behavior and communication in children with autism and increased their ability to understand language. L-carnitine may benefit children's speech and language development.
- Iron
It is crucial for the child's growth and development, as well as for the perceptual and cognitive growth of the child. Delay in speech is one of the symptoms of autism that is linked to an increase in the severity of the condition. However, it is worth noting the importance of checking iron levels before giving it to the child to avoid iron poisoning .
Tips for parents to help the child speak
Following our discovery of a class of vitamins that aid in speech development, we present to you a list of parenting advice that will benefit your child in the following areas:
- Focus on communicating with the child by talking to him, singing, and encouraging him to imitate sounds and movements.
- Start reading to the child even when he is an infant, and you can use books with large and attractive pictures and pronounce the names of things to the child.
- Be keen to build the child’s verbal ability since childhood, by using daily events, such as naming the names of vegetables to the child while shopping, and multiplying the steps and actions that you do during cooking, for example, or referring to objects and naming them by their names, while making sure to choose short and easy words.
Reasons for delayed speech in children
As we mentioned in the section on vitamins that help the child to speak, the reason for speech delay may be the child’s autism , which is likely to have many medical reasons, but it is not the only reason. Another factor contributing to speech delay is as follows:
- Hearing disorders where the ability to hear affects the child's ability to speak.
- The presence of oral disorders such as a problem in the tongue or palate, such as the failure of the frenulum, which is the folds under the tongue, which limits the movement of the tongue and thus the ability to speak.
- Oral motor disorders, where there is a problem in the speech centers in the brain, which causes difficulty in synchronizing the movement of the lips, tongue, and jaw. These children usually have difficulty swallowing and eating as well.