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Baby Language Development: Speech Delay in Toddlers

It's fairly common for parents of toddlers to wonder about their baby's language development. Is she talking soon enough? Why can't I understand what she's saying? Should I worry? Most of the time, the answer is no. It's normal. But you should consider the possibility that your toddler may have a speech and language delay if:

She's 2 years old and she:

  • Doesn't seem to be making much progress from month to month.

  • Doesn't react normally or consistently to sounds.
  • Uses mostly vowels as opposed to a mix of vowels and consonants.
  • Uses one catch-all sound or syllable to refer to large numbers of objects (for example, "duh-duh").
  • Is sticking to single-word utterances rather than full sentences.
  • Doesn't use common words like "bye-bye" or seem to enjoy basic speech and language games like peek-a-boo.
  • Doesn't integrate new words into everyday speech (for example, she uses a word once but then seems to forget that the word exists).
  • Doesn't point to common objects in books when you ask her to identify them.
  • Gives up easily if she's not able to communicate a message to you.
  • She's 3 years of age and she:

    • Is unintelligible to others.

  • Has a very limited vocabulary.
  • Can't produce words or phrases spontaneously (for example, she can only repeat back what you're saying).
  • Can't follow simple directions.
  • Has a highly nasal sound to her voice or some other unusual voice quality.
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