Drinking While Pregnant Research Paper

Alcohol is not the solution; it’s proven that those who consume alcohol have a greater risk to have a baby with fetal alcohol syndrome. Signs and symptoms are different on most babies but may include different physical defects as intellectual or cognitive disabilities and problems coping and functioning with daily life. Distinctive facial features, deformity of joins, vision and hearing problems, poor coordination and valance, poor memory, poor social skills and difficulty planning or working towards a goal are just some of those problems.

Fetal alcohol syndrome is an interesting fact about drinking alcohol during pregnancy. According to Sigelman and Rider (2017), it is a possibility, if the mother drinks heavily, but also other variables (p. 111). The timing of ingesting pollutants is one area to view with the most severe risk in the first three months. Alcohol is one of the most used toxins and prompts many deformities.

Symptoms of Fetal Alcohol syndrome are present not only at birth, but also during gestation. Low prenatal growth, and birth weight are common primary signs. A small head, small eye openings, droopy eye lids, a short upturned nose, thin upper lip, and small jaw are just some of the many physical abnormalities that can occur with chronic drinking. The physical birth defects are devastating yet just as much damage is unseen by the naked eye. Central nervous system defects such as Mental Retardation and behavior disorders can be seen. Poor concentration, impulsiveness and lack of judgment have a severe impact on the child's overall development. Children with behavior problems also do worse than normal children in school. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome children have problems paying attention, score lower in mathematics and spelling, and have lower I.Q scores. Not only do these defects get worse as the child ages, the vicious cycle of alcohol abuse is also very likely to continue. Fetal Alcohol syndrome children are more likely to become alcohol dependant adults than children of mothers who did not drink. All the devastating disabilities last a lifetime. Early and accurate diagnosis of Fetal Alcohol

As stated earlier, alcohol has its greatest effect on the developing embryo during the first trimester of pregnancy with its teratogenic effect causing mental retardation as well as characteristic craniofacial abnormalities that are characteristic of the disease. It has also been demonstrated with experimental animal models that there is a clear "dose-response" effect between the amount of alcohol consumed by the mother and the risk that is associated with developing FAS symptoms (Walpole, p. 875). It has been proposed by Walpole and associates that there are various degrees to which the fetus An be effected. Walpole uses the term "fetal alcohol syndrome" to refer to serious effects due to heavy maternal drinking and "fetal alcohol effect" to refer to those effects thought to occur with lower maternal alcohol intake (Walpole, p. 875). Regardless of the degree to which

Considering the multitudes of things that could go wrong during a pregnancy, why would mothers consume alcohol despite the warnings of possible birth defects? Many are familiar with the "Just Say No" campaign spearheaded by Nancy Reagan in the 1980 's to prevent drug and alcohol use among teens. However, many turn a blind eye to the warnings of the surgeon general stating alcohol consumption during pregnancy can result in birth defects. When a pregnant woman consumes alcohol, she puts her fetus at risk from mild to severe physical, mental and cognitive disabilities. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is the term that is used to describe an array of disorders that occurs as a consequence of women consuming alcohol during pregnancy. There are many types of FASD including fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), partial fetal alcohol syndrome, alcohol-related birth defects(ARBD), alcohol-related neurodevelopment disorder(ARND), and neurobehavioral disorder associated with prenatal alcohol exposure. Although alcohol consumption during pregnancy is ill-advised, throughout the United States mothers continue to drink during pregnancy. Being FASD is the most preventable of developmental disabilities, I will examine the irreparable consequences of alcohol consumption during pregnancy and its behavioral, physical, cognitive and educational implications on the fetus and the family.

Every year, about 40,000 babies are born with symptoms of prenatal alcohol exposure (Lupton, 2003). This number will only continue to grow if the risk of drinking alcohol while pregnant is not brought to the people’s attention. When the mother takes a drink of alcohol, so does the fetus, which will cause physical and behavioral problems after birth. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is completely preventable and irreversible. FAS awareness and prevention is important; expectant mothers need to know the background information about the syndrome, some common symptoms, signs, and treatments, and the mental and physical abnormalities that will occur because of this lifelong syndrome.

“Fetal alcohol syndrome is a condition in a child that results from alcohol exposure during the mother's pregnancy” (Fetal alcohol syndrome. n.d.). Each year 1 in 750 infants in the United States are born in the United States alone, while another 40,000 are born with alcohol fetal effects. This happens to a child when the mother continues to drink alcohol during her pregnancy. Fetal alcohol syndrome can cause mental, physical, developmental disabilities in the baby, while fetal alcohol effects are milder, less advanced form of fetal alcohol syndrome.

A pregnant woman’s lifestyle ultimately affects the development of her baby. Drinking alcohol when you are pregnant has been shown to cause harm towards the unborn baby as it develops in the mother’s womb. Mothers who drink alcohol while pregnant have a higher risk of their baby having long-term

Since the discovery of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome specialists have been trying to understand the different affects that alcoholism can have on a fetus. As a result of these studies there have been several terms used to range describe the different effects the alcohol can have on a fetus. They are called Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Fetal Alcohol Effects, Alcohol Related Birth Defects, ,and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, and Alcohol Related Neurological Disorder. There are three primary facial abnormalities that a specialists looks for in order to make an official diagnosis of FAS .These include smooth philtrum,thin vermillion border,and short palpabrel fissures.A documentation is also made about the growth deficits and CNS abnormalities a child with CNS may face. The term “fetal alcohol effects” (FAE)is used to describe negative outcomes of maternal alcoholism that do not meet the criteria for FAS.FAE was first introduced in1978.There was research conducted by a group called Research Society on Alcoholism’s Fetal Alcohol Study Group (FASG) (Rosett 2013). Problems began to arise concerning the use of terminology to distinguish between a diagnosis of FAS and FAE

A woman finds out that she is pregnant at twelve weeks; she has been routinely partying and behaving promiscuously. For most women finding out this life changing news would affect their behavior, however; she continues to drink throughout her pregnancy. At thirty four weeks pregnant the woman delivers a four pound baby boy, he is rushed to the NICU with breathing problems and struggles to survive. Fortunately, the baby survives; but he continues to struggle throughout his life, learning slowly and displaying symptoms of fetal alcohol syndrome all because his mother was unwilling or unable to stop drinking during her pregnancy. Drinking during pregnancy can cause a miscarriage which is a spontaneous loss of a pregnancy. Alcohol use during pregnancy can result in an infant having a low birth weight. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or FAS is a syndrome that affects a child throughout their life. Expectant mothers should refrain from any alcohol consumption during pregnancy because alcohol use can cause miscarriage, low birth weight or in extreme cases result in Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.

Whether the mother of a child drank heavily or mildly during her pregnancy, her child can be diagnosed with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Within FASD, there are three disorders that a child can be diagnosed with: fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), partial fetal alcohol syndrome (p-FAS), or alcohol related neurodevelopment disorder (ARND). The severity of the disorder and what the child will be diagnosed with depends on the severity, duration, frequency of exposure, maternal genetics, the mother’s metabolism, and the timing of the exposure (O’Neil. 2011). FAS is the most severe diagnoses of FASD and is the result of the mother drinking heavily during her pregnancy, with p-FAS being the second and ARND being the least severe. Children born

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) describes the range of problems related to alcohol exposure before birth. The problems range from mild to severe. With the consumption of alcohol it can cause baby to have mental as well as physical problem after the birth and this may last throughout his or her life.

Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) occurs when a woman consumes alcohol during their pregnancy. The birth defects of Fetal alcohol syndrome are mental retardation, and growth problems, mainly of the face of the infant. Studies have shown that human and animal results vary, regarding in utero alcohol exposures across individuals. The varying results depend on many factors, including the amount of alcohol consumed, body mass, genetics, and age of the mother. Extensive research has shown a range of behavioral, common sense, and physical impairments in children exposed to FAS. The ability to learn, language and speech delays, emotional and behavioral problems, and antisocial behavior have also been reported. To note, most studies have been performed

Heavy drinking during a pregnancy can have a very serious effect on the unborn child and lead to a number of serious health problems. When drinking occurs during pregnancy the alcohol reaches the baby`s bloodstream via the placenta and even a very small amount of alcohol can damage the unborn child and larger amounts can significantly increase the risk of stillbirth, miscarriage and foetal alcohol syndrome. This condition occurs in the feotus because the baby’s liver is not fully formed and it relies on the mother’s liver to break down the alcohol. Because alcohol only leaves the body / bloodstream at one unit an hour it places a heavy burden on the mother’s liver to remove the alcohol quickly. One average bottle of white wine can have approximately

fetus which is an unborn child. Alcohol can damage a fetus at any stage of pregnancy, but is