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Research paper fetal alcohol syndrome
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Fetal alcohol syndrome research essay
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Drug and alcohol abuse has become a worldwide epidemic within today’s society. The battle against drugs and alcohol is not going to diminish. Therefore, we as a society need to work together to address these problems while incorporating successful treatment plans and services for these individuals. The addiction to these substances does not only effect oneself, but can also have profound consequences for the children and families. When children are involved in a family structure that abuses alcohol or drugs an array of dysfunction becomes evident. Children might be subjected to child maltreatment, child abuse, physical/sexual abuse, or neglect, among many other inappropriate parenting practices. The alarming statistics of children that …show more content…
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is a pattern of birth defects caused by maternal consumption of alcohol during pregnancy. Children born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome tend to have physical abnormalities such as deformed facial characteristics. They are generally born with a variety of emotional and/or intellectual limitations. It is very common for these children to be born with mild to severe forms of mental retardation (Harvard Mental Health, 2004, p. 1). Children that were exposed to alcohol while in the womb of the mother can suffer from an assortment of physical and intellectual impairments in their future. These children tend to have issues with impulse control, hyperactivity, disputes with socially acceptable behaviors and actions, and impaired learning. These are a few illustrations of the dominance this disease has over the child (Harvard Mental Health, 2004, p. 1). According to Harvard Mental Health (2004) mental retardation in children is most commonly caused by Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (p. 1). In the United States, statistics state that about 12,000 children are born each year with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. This consists of “1 in 5 to 1 in 2,000 live births” (Harvard Mental Health, 2004, p. 2). Not only does this disease effect these children physically and mentally, but some of these children also become parentless and homeless due to their families addictions. If this occurs …show more content…
The addicted individuals need to be aware of the services that are available for them and their children during and after their addictive stages. The abuse that some of these children endure can start at the earliest stages of their lives. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome begins to effect the child while it is still in its mother’s womb. This disease not only effects the child physically, but emotionally and intellectually. Many parents continue to abuse substances while they are knowingly pregnant. The child may suffer from withdrawal symptoms due to the drug that the mother was taking throughout her pregnancy. They also tend to be born with abnormities in their physical and cognitive development. In addition to these already traumatic experiences, AOD addiction can escalate into severe forms of abuse towards the children. Children can be physically, emotionally, and sexually abused, while neglect and other forms of parental maltreatment is common. These forms of abuse can gravely effect the child emotionally, psychologically, intellectually, and physically. Many children that are in these family situations may end up in foster care due to their parent’s inability to properly care for them due to their addictions. If children grow up in families, with issues such as these, it will most likely affect them throughout the remainder of their
Equally important, therapy for parents with children who abuse drugs, participate in treatment interventions in a therapeutic setting with the Family Therapy Model, using Cognitive Behavior Therapy or CBT. The main goal of CBT is to improve family relationships by promoting sobriety and correcting the erratic or destructive behaviors/patterns, which aid in a person’s addiction. The goal is to educate family members about triggers, in the event of a relapse or erratic behaviors that resurface. In the event, families can resolve conflict in a positive way and recognize future erratic behaviors, before it's too late. Nevertheless, the Strategic family therapy is the best option, for Ryan and his family because of the relationship and separation
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.
Women who are pregnant, but drink moderate amounts of alcohol still pose many dangerous threats to their unborn child. A fetal alcohol effect is one of them, with slight deformities, mental retardation, and learning disabilities. Fetal alcohol effected children not only have physical differences from normal children, but also suffer with psychiatric problems and at more apt to get in trouble with the law. Pregnant women who drink not only run the risk of having a baby with fetal alcohol syndrome, but of having a child with alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder. Alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder occurs when children have prenatal exposure to alcohol. These babies have cognitive and behavioral problems that are alcohol-related, without the severe facial or growth deformities babies with fetal alcohol syndrome have. Pregnant women who drink expose their baby to teratogen ethanol- the active ingredient in alcohol. The fetus exposure is longer and more intense compared to the mother who is able to metabolize the teratogen ethanol.
In the United States, twenty million children are experiencing physical, verbal and emotional abuse from parents who are addicted to alcohol. Growing up in an alcoholic house can leave emotional scars that may last a lifetime. This is tragic because we consider that childhood is the foundation on which our entire lives are fabricated. When a child’s efforts to bond with an addicted parent are handicapped, the result is confusion and intense anxiety. In order to survive in a home deficient, of healthy parental love, limits, and consistency, they must develop “survival skills” or defense mechanisms very early in life.
Merrick J, Merrick E, Morad M, Kandel I. (2006). Fetal alcohol syndrome and its long-term effects. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Faculty of Health Sciences Jun;58(3):211-8.
There are many contributing factors and political issues that address substance abuse. Throughout the years, many researchers have designed many interventions and social policies designed to treat people who have used, abused, and became addicted to substances. Today, there are many new studies that address substance abuse at the individual, group, family, and community or policy levels. Today, there are many services that are effective for decreasing recidivism in youth who have completed a substance abuse program. A substance abuse treatment program or center is the best way to treat individuals who have abused substances.
Child abuse can come in many shapes in forms. There are four different kinds of abuse that I will be encountering in my research paper; they are physical, mental, emotional, and neglect. Most abuse is from neglect and net from physical. The category under physical also brings in the sexual abuse. (Do Something) Drug addicted babies also can qualify under the category of emotional and mental category. Two of the main questions in this paper are what is child abuse and what are drug addicted babies lives like. It turns out that babies lives do get affected majorly after the age of four, we’ll learn more about that later though. (Kronstadt, 2013)
“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.
According to the British Medical Association in 2007, FASD is the leading cause of intellectual disabilities that do not have a genetic cause in the Western World. (Callanan, 2013) In the United States, FASD is said to affect approximately 9.1 in every 1000 births. (Greene, 2007) In the mid-19th century, the British noted that babies born to mothers who were alcoholics had a shriveled appearance, and were smaller than typical. (Jones & Streissguth, 2010) In spite of this, no additional research was undertaken until 1973 in the United States, when Dr. Shirley Anderson began following 11 different children who had been born to mothers who were alcoholics. As she followed them through childhood, she noted similar physical and facial characteristics in four of those children, including “microcephaly, short palpebral fissures, and a smooth philtrum.” (Jones & Streissguth, 2010) This led to the identification of multiple other children with similar abnormalities, and who also demonstrated varying degrees of global developmental delays. Based on these observations an...
Every single person in an addict’s immediate family is affected in some way by the individual’s substance abuse. In recent years, our society has moved further away from the traditional nuclear family. There are single-parent homes and blended family homes. Each of these family structures and more will affect the addict’s overall impact on the family. If young children are a part of the family, their
According to Kelley et. al (2002), nearly 30% of female and 18% of male adult addicts live with children. This lends to m...
The diagnosis of this type of substance use disorder often is difficult because the symptoms of substance abuse can be comparable to the symptoms of other medical and behavioral problems that are found in older adults, such as dementia, diabetes, and depression. Many healthcare providers underestimate the extent of substance abuse problems among older generation, therefore, do not screen older adults. Seniors often live with or are supported by their adult children or other family members because of financial necessity and with their substance abuse it is placing additional financial hardship on supporting families, as well as the psychological damage. If the older adult’s spouse is present, they are likely to be an older adult as well, and may be perplexed by their partners new and disruptive behaviors and may not be able to understand the addiction. Therefore, their spouse may not be in a position to help assist in recovery. Their children may take on a parental, caretaking role. This role reversal can be stressful, painful, and embarrassing. In some cases, grown children may stop providing financial support, physical abuse, and assert emotional control because it is the only influence they have over the parent. Children may cut ties with the parent due to their substance abuse. Cutting ties have only increased the parent’s isolation and may worsen the predicament.
Babies can develop disorders if they are exposed to alcohol and other substances while in the womb. Exposure to maternal drinking during early
According to Institute of Alcohol Studies there is more than one kind of relationship involved between alcohol problems and mental health, such as: mental health problems may be a cause of problem drinking and vice versa; there may be a factor in common, in the genes or in the early family environment, which later contributes to both a mental health problems and alcohol probl...