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Partners In Kids Health: Stuttering In Children

Stuttering can affect people of all ages. According to the National Stuttering Association, about 5 percent of children experience stuttering at some point.

“Stuttering is when a person has difficulty smoothly producing speech to communicate,” said Margaret Holladay, a speech-language pathologist at Children’s of Alabama.

Many children will go through a stage between the ages of 2 and 5 when they stutter. They may repeat or prolong certain syllables, words, or phrases or stop making no sound for certain sounds and syllables. Doctors and scientists say they do not currently know why some children stutter. But most believe a few things can contribute to it, such as a family history of stuttering or a problem with how the brain’s messages interact with the muscles and body parts needed for speaking.

“We stress getting help, the earlier the better,” said Holladay. “We want to empower families to feel like they can have some power over this. We want to empower children to communicate.”

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