Women carry a heavy burden when it comes to the survival of our species. For nine months, a woman is the temporary home and life support that keeps a fetus alive and healthy. Unfortunately, if any one woman decides to put herself before the developing child inside of her, there can be damaging consequences. There are many things, both legal and illegal, that can radically alter the outcome of the child growing inside of a woman. Alcohol and drug consumption during pregnancy in many places around the world is seen as taboo, while others are less mindful of the potential effects of such choices and in some cases actually condone drug use during pregnancy. Regardless of the cultural influences that exist, women should take into consideration what can happen if the fetus is exposed to alcohol and drugs. The effects of drugs in utero can have severe and everlasting effects throughout a child’s lifespan.
1. Cannabis
Marijuana is a rapidly growing topic for discussion due to states legalizing its use outside of medicinal purposes. But the law cannot dictate who is allowed to use it once he or she has met the legal age requirement. A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine showed “27 percent of the subjects had used marijuana during pregnancy” (Zuckerman et al.).
Women who smoke marijuana during pregnancy have an amplified chance of delivering preterm babies who may have a lower head and chest circumference, as well as reduced birth weight ("MSACD Marijuana."). Because of these effects, the fetus has an increased risk of mental retardation that could manifest itself later in life.
Just as with smoking during pregnancy, usage can still affect the baby after birth if the mother is breastfeeding. What the mother is taking into...
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Just as drugs such as marijuana, cocaine, and crystal meth affect the mother, it also affects the child. Babies that are born to drug using mothers are called “drug babies” and just like their mother they become addicted to the drugs causing behavior problems during their childhood. They can also have birth defects, premature birth, and are usually underweight. Babies that are born to cocaine using mothers are called “crack babies” and they face the risk of a stroke leading to brain damage. Teratogenic medications such as some antibiotics, cancer fighting medicines, blood thinners, and acne fighting medicines such as Accutane can all cause birth
There are many factors that are integrated into the successful development of a child from Prenatal growth into toddlerhood. Teratogens (outside factors) have a great impact on the babies’ inutero development. Some outside factors like second-hand smoke, smog, or fumes from cleaning chemicals can cause negative effects on the child inside the womb. A few major affects from teratogens could result in low birth weight, head circumference, slow physical growth as well as an effect on mental, behavioral and motor skills (Berk, 2003). The environment around the mother provides many of these outside factors affecting the baby’s growth. But the main link to teratogens during the gestation period is most likely the mother. Daniel S. Messinger and the National Institute on Drug Abuse found that 2.8% of pregnant women admitted to using illicit drugs during their pregnancy (1996). Through illicit drug use, tobacco use and alcohol use, the mother disrupts her baby’s growth with possibly permanent damage.
Shniderman, Nancy, and Sue Hurwitz. Drugs and Birth Defects. New York: Rosen Pub. Group, 1993. Print.
Increasing numbers of women are abusing drugs during pregnancy and thus endangering the well-being and lives of their children as well as themselves. The spreading abuse of phencyclidine (PCP), cocaine, and cocaine's potent form "crack," added to the more well-known addictive narcotics such as heroin, has intensified concerns about the implications of maternal drug use for unborn children.
...livery, low birth weight, growth defects and most importantly, drug withdrawal. Marijuana and cigarette smoking can lead to early miscarriage, low birth weight and other health issues including asthma. All illegal drugs will effect the healthy development of the child in the future years. A child may suffer from the strains of withdrawal, show developmental delays, as well as behavioural and learning disabilities.
Schwartz, Richard H. "Marijuana: A Decade And A Half Later, Still A Crude Drug With Underappreciated Toxicity." Pediatrics 109.2 (2002): 284. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 29 Mar. 2014.
Smoking is linked with poor reproductive health in both men and women. In men it has been associated with impotence and reduced sperm count. Women who smoke have greater difficulty becoming pregnant and suffer early menopause. The risks to the fetus of smoking during pregnancy are well known and include increased incidence of miscarriage, neonatal death, and low birth weight. Pregnant woman who smoke are more likely to have babies who have an increased risk of death from sudden infant death syndrome and respiratory distress. They are also more likely to have low birth weight babies. Low birth weight is linked to many infants’ health disorders.
Drug abuse can be harmful due to the fact that the placenta connect the mother to the child. Therefore, everything the mother take in her body will be shared with the growing child. If the mother uses a drug the child will be affected by it. At this stage, the baby (fetus) is very delicate to drugs and cannot remove drugs successfully as the mother is able to. Consequently, all the chemical can pile up to very extreme levels in the child’s system and can also cause damages that will last a lifetime. The effect of perinatal drugs use are influenced by the stage of development of the ...
Smoking is harmful to the mother, as it is to any individual who smokes, but it is linked to severe health issues for the baby. Problems seen in unborn foetuses include low birth weight, defects and even miscarriage. Problems seen in neonates include sudden infant death syndrome, asthma and childhood obesity. The mother is also at risk of vaginal bleeding and premature labour2.
If one does not incur an illness, their child may due to the parent’s drug abuse. Drugs can affect even the unborn baby. They can change the very structure of a man’s sperm, causing him to become sterile or give an egg a diseased sperm. “A pregnant woman who regularly smokes marijuana or hashish may/could give birth prematurely to an undersized, underweight baby,”– (Drug-Free World #1). A baby born in spite of all of these conditio...
All drugs, legal or illegal, are considered to be harmful to the fetus and should be taken with caution and under the doctor’s direct orders only. Drugs can be anything as simple as a cigarette to a major substance like heroin and cocaine. Most mothers who do drugs during their pregnancy don’t think about the detrimental effects they could be causing to their baby. Any amount of these forbidden substances can leave an everlasting effect on the precious defenseless baby. Most women know that when you are pregnant your hormones vary greatly, but when a woman is pregnant it also ...
“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.
During a pregnancy there are many choices to be made and smoking should not be one of them. Smoking while pregnant can cause major effects before the birth of the child and also in the child’s future. Here are a few effects before the actual birth of the child: 1) Cigarettes contains a large number of chemicals that harm unborn babies. 2) Smoking raises the levels of carbon monoxide in your bloodstream. This gives less oxygen for baby. 3) Nicotine tightens the blood vessels, meaning the oxygen is passed over less effectively to the baby 4) Miscarriage or stillborn.
This essay covers information over the course of prenatal development. I will also discuss teratology and hazards to the prenatal development, those such as, caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, cocaine, marijuana, heroin, and opioids. Additionally, I will discuss how maternal factors such as maternal diet and nutrition, maternal age, emotional states and stress, and paternal factors, may influence prenatal development.
Substance abuse can have an effect before an individual enters into the world. When a pregnant mother drinks alcohol, this can have serious consequences for the developing fetus leading to a wide range of developmental problems with lifelong consequences. Although it is difficult to measure the prevalence of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (due to the wide range of symptoms), the Centers for Disease Control (2013) estimates anywhere from 2% to 5% of the population as being affected by some form of the