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Research in relation to the effects on the foetus of alcohol misuse whilst pregnant
Effects of fetal alcohol syndrome on children
Effects of fetal alcohol syndrome
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Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
On any given day in the United States approximately 10,600 babies are born. (US Census Bureau).
Of those, twenty babies are born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS), is a series of both mental and physical birth defects that can include mental retardation, growth deficiencies, central nervous system disorders, behavioral problems, and craniofacial deformities…and it is one hundred percent preventable.
Growth deficiencies can be significant and include the following:
Weight Length
Head Circumference
Craniofacial deformities reveal eyes that are small with large inner epicanthic folds. The bridge of the nose is poorly developed. The ears are sometimes large and under developed. When baby is delivered, they may show signs of alcohol withdrawal, depending on the mother’s level of alcohol intake, with signs of delirium tremens. They are inconsolable, display weak grasps, and have difficulty in feeding/sucking.
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First named and treated in the 1960’s, the condition results from the toxic effect of alcohol consumption and its chemical factors on a developing fetus. FAS is the leading cause of mental retardation in one out of every seven hundred fifty births. This number changes drastically if the mother is a heavy, habitual alcoholic, as high as twenty nine children out of every one thousand births. The ultimate sadness of this disease is that is one hundred percent
Meanwhile for other babies having an underdeveloped brain could cause major physical problems for the child. This could include hearing loss and visual problems which would mean that the child would not be able to recognise voices and its surroundings. Another problem this could cause is feeding problems because the child might not be able to swallow this would cause major issues because the child wouldn't be able to get the nutrients it needs to
A mother who drinks while she is pregnant stands a high risk of harming their unborn child because the alcohol passes through her blood to her baby, and that can harm the development of the baby’s cells. This is most likely to harm the baby’s brain and spinal cord. Many of the common effects of a child suffering from fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is: distinctive facial features, growth problems making them smaller than the average child, and learning and behavior problems.
lip, skin folds at the corners of the eyes, indistinct groove on the upper lip, and an
a patient's birth defects. In other words, FAE is a less severe form of FAS.
Pregnant women who drink often miscarry or have low-birth weight infants, and are at a much greater risk of having a child who has fetal alcohol syndrome. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome can include heart defects, poor coordination, hyperactive behavior; learning and developmental disabilities, and mental retardation. These problems are long term and also come with physical deformities like a narrow head, smaller eyes, and stunted growth. These effects are more common to women who are either heavy drinkers or binge drinkers.
around the world how many kids that would add up to and how many end up killed because they
Alcohol (wine, beer, or liquor) is the leading known preventable cause of developmental and physical birth defects in the United States. When a woman drinks alcohol during pregnancy, she risks giving birth to a child who will pay the price, in mental and physical deficiencies, for his or her entire life. One study (Phyllis Trujillo Lewis, MA, Philip A. May, PhD, and Virginia C. Shipman, PhD, 2007) asserted that “Numerous studies on alcohol-related birth defects have concluded that maternal drinking, compounded by other risk factors, leads to fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). FAS is a serious birth defect and the most common non-genetic cause of mental retardation” as said by (Hankin, 2002; Abel & Sokol,1986; O’Connor, Kogan, & Findlay, 2002; May & Gossage, in press). It is unknown how much maternal alcohol consumption results in FAS or other related disorders, or why some women who drink are at substantially higher risk of giving birth to a child with alcohol-related disabilities than others (Stratton, Howe, & Battaglia, 1996). However, researchers have identified several maternal risk factors differentially associated with FAS. These include advanced maternal age, number of pregnancies, previous births of a child with FAS, cohabitation with a male partner who drinks heavily, and low socioeconomic status (SES; May et al. 2004; 2008a; Viljoen et al., 2002). FAS is 100% preventable, which makes awareness and education the core preventative method for FAS. It is seen through Lewis, May & Shipman’s research that women who are less educated are less aware of the risks involved with drinking while pregnant.
According to the March of Dimes, "nearly thirteen percent of all births in the United States were teens ages fifteen to nineteen. Almost one million teenagers become pregnant each year and about 485,000 give birth (Teenage 1).
“I brought you into this world, and I can take you out!” A child has most likely heard that phrase at some point in their life. Although, it is not ethical or legal for a mother to “take her kid out of this world”, it does bring up a good point that it was through her body, that the child was born. One of the most important responsibilities in this world is a mother carrying a child in the womb. There are many divine processes that take place during gestation, but there are also many contributing factors from the mother that can affect the developing human. These factors may include what a woman ingests and exposes her embryo or fetus to. Sadly, alcohol use during pregnancy is an ongoing problem that can have detrimental affects on the fetus, including Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). Choosing to drink alcoholic beverages during pregnancy is a choice, a risky choice. Unfortunately some women don’t even know they are making a risky choice by consuming alcohol because it is in the early stages of pregnancy. It is common for a female to not find out they are pregnant until at least the fifth or sixth week after fertilization. In 2006, 49% of all pregnancies in the United States were reported unintended on a national survey.1 The highest rate of preventable birth defects and mental retardation is due to alcohol use.2 In this paper, I will further discuss FAS, the potential effects of binge drinking during the embryonic stage of gestation, and what actions need to be taken in order to reduce the incidences of alcohol related birth defects.
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome has several symptoms such as a small head, below average height and weight, hyperactivity, lack of focus, poor coordination, poor judgement, heart problems, deformed limbs and fingers, mood swings, and etc. They don’t really have a treatment for fetal alcohol syndrome but
Statistics show, for every 1,000 children born in the United States, 0.2 to 1.5 of those children have Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is a condition in children that results from alcohol exposure during the mother's pregnancy (mayoclinic.org). Fetal Alcohol Syndrome affects a person educationally, socially, and emotionally.
The majority all birth defects are associated with certain extent of craniofacial malformation. Cleft lip and/or palate alone occur in nearly one in 600 live births, and it's affecting around 6,800 infants every year in the United States only. Although multidisciplinary approach is performed to correct these structural defects, patients are still dealing with functional, social, and aesthetic challenges. Oral, dental and craniofacial defects are linked to various forms of congenital anomalies. Although they are less common than orofacial clefts, these anomalies represent a tremendous financial, social and psychological burden on affected families and caregivers.
wide scale basis to pregnant women, over 3,000 babies were born with deformities which was
Though the teen birth rate has declined to its lowest levels since data collection began, the United States still has the highest teen birth rate in the industrialized world. Roughly, one in four girls will become pregnant at least once by their 20th birthday. In addition, young people ages 15 to 24 represent 25 percent of the sexually active population, but acquire half of all new STIs.