Photo/Illutration A day care center in Kyoto (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Being isolated from playmates and adults other than their parents during the novel coronavirus pandemic set back the development of 5-year-olds by about four months, a new study showed.

The study, which looked into the effects of COVID-19 on the development of preschool children, was conducted by a group headed by Koryu Sato, an assistant professor of public health at Kyoto University, and involved researchers at the University of Tsukuba and Keio University.

“Aggressive support for children is needed,” Sato said. “A follow-up study should also be conducted to determine if the effects are long lasting."

Children were studied at day care centers from ages 1 to 3 and another group from ages 3 to 5. Some of the children were studied prior to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in January 2020, and their development was compared with those examined after the outbreak.

A total of 887 preschool children at 43 accredited day care centers at a municipality in the greater Tokyo metropolitan area were studied between fiscal 2017 and fiscal 2019.

Those in the 5-year-old group who experienced the pandemic were found to be, on average, about four months behind in their development compared to those studied before the pandemic.

The 5-year-olds who lived through the pandemic were found to be less developed in terms of physical movements, language expressions and behavior.

No clear difference was found in children who were studied from when they were 1 to 3, however. In some cases, those who lived through the pandemic appeared to have developed faster in some areas than those who did not, in part, because they likely spent more time with parents who were at home during the pandemic.

Children develop various social skills from the ages of 3 to 5, but the researchers surmised that not interacting with playmates or adults other than their parents because of the pandemic likely negatively affected the development of such social skills.

The group also found the pandemic exacerbated the differences in development arising from individual differences and depending on the day care center. Five-year-olds with parents who complained of psychological stress due to the pandemic were also found to be lagging behind in their development.

“To protect children’s development, parents also need support to ensure they can raise their children with peace of mind,” Sato said.

The results of the research were released on July 10 on the online version of JAMA Pediatrics, a scientific journal published by the American Medical Association.

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