Birth Defects
No one is immune to birth defects, yet not everyone is equally susceptible.
Birth defects are not merely a medical problem. They have profound effects on the social and psychological well being of their family and friends.
In the normal course of fetal development, cells migrate to their appropriate destination so that organs and limbs form where they should. Usually, the genes perform flawlessly, but mistakes can and do occur. Some of the most common birth defects results from the interaction between one or two abnormal genes out of 100,000 that make up who we are. This is caused by the genes parents pass on or effected by drugs and alcohol upon the fetus of a new born child. Down's syndrome, the most common genetic disease formerly known as mongolism, "occurs one in every six hundred births throughout the world" ( Storm
102). It is caused by chromosomal error, where there is an extra chromosome 21.
Instead of have two chromosomes as does a normal individual, there are three.
These children's features include up slanted eyelids, depressed foreheads, hearing loss, dental problems, poor speech development, heart disease and intestinal problems where surgery is required. Parents feel very helpless and guilty in many of these and similar situations, feeling as if they are abnormal.
However most can learn to walk, talk, dress themselves and eat. Special work programs are available that can help the child reach their education level. Also these work programs help takes off the many stresses facing parents. They no longer have to go it alone.
Tay Sachs disease is another selective genetic disorder that destroyed nerve cells. This causes mental retardation, loss of muscle control and death.
Children who inherit an abnormal gene from both parents will inherit the decease.
The carrier parents have one normal gene and one defective gene. Carriers of
Tay-Sachs disease have no symptoms. " If two carriers have children, each child has twenty-five percent chance of inheriting the defective gene (both parents)"
(Strom 174). These children are unable to produce an enzyme that breaks down fats in the brain and nerve cells. The cells become clogged with fat and prevent the cells from functioning normally. Within three to four years their bodies dies. Sandra vividly remembers how happy she was to have a baby brother and what a beautiful, h...
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... be wrong.
" Since two hundred and fifty thousand babies with birth defects of varying severity are born in the United States each year" ( Gravelle 6), it would be hard not to meet some of these people. In the past few decades, many strides have been taken to help understand the causes of such diseases with hope of treatments and cures. Also works of finding ways to help the parents cope with their emotional devastation have been taken as many accomplishments have been made. Parents are now finding ways to move past their anger and frustration and enjoy a loving relationship with their child. With a wider knowledge of information available and treatment to drug addits families can pull though.
Caring for a child is a tough emotional and physical battle but should always be looked as a gift, these children have much to offer.
Work Cited
Darling, Jon. Children Who Are Different. Toronto: The C.V. Mosby Company, 1982.
Gardner, Suzy. Substance Abuse During Pregnancy: Protecting The Foetus And New
Born Child. Norwich: UEA Norwich., 1992. Gravelle, Karen. Understanding Birth
Defects. U.S.A: Frankin Watts, 1990. Strom, Charles. Heredity and Ability.
U.S.A: Plenum Press, 1990.
Birth - "All persons born or naturalized" "are citizens" of the U.S. and the U.S. State where they reside (14th Amendment, 1868)
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.
Drug and alcohol use in pregnancy poses a threat to the neonate’s development and the obstetric provider has an obligation to screen for substance use. Substance use in pregnancy can place the developing fetus at risk for in-utero opioid dependence, fetal-alcohol syndrome, preterm labor, and other consequences of maternal alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drug use.(6) Within the past three years La Crosse County has seen a marked increase in the amount of heroin use.(7)
Children need to be loved and nurtured, especially as infants, in a way that only a human parent can provide.
The intake of drugs and alcohol during pregnancy can cause many different birth defects. Drugs and alcohol can easily reach the baby while inside the mother. When a pregnant woman consumes a drug or some alcohol it enters into her bloodstream, then makes its way to the placenta. When it reaches the placenta it travels through the umbilical cord to the baby’s body (Schniderman pg. 27). Once it reaches the bay it can cause a lot of different problems. Drinking alcohol can cause the baby to be born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. If too much alcohol gets into the baby’s bloodstream the baby will most likely have FAS. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome can affect an infant after it is born or even later on in life. Kids with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome can be impulsive at times, and they tend to not learn from their own mistakes and behavior unlike other children (Stewart pg. 47). Having a child with FAS could be very hard. They have difficulties trying to learn certain things. Learning from mistakes make life so much easier, and having a child who cannot do that could be very stressful. Many people put the...
Substance abuse during pregnancy can have a negative force on the health and wellness of not only the fetus, but that of the mother. The harmful effects of medications, alcohol and illegal drugs on an unborn child can be devastating and can have significant consequences to its use. Sometimes the effects can be faced and treated, and other times the outcome is a lifelong challenge. During the prenatal period, it is important that new mothers are informed of the different types of abuse, how they may affect the fetus, and the adverse conditions their child may be faced with before and after birth.
There are many complications that can occur during childbirth, one being premature birth. Premature birth is birth before 37 weeks of development. Each year more than 543,000 babies are born prematurely, (Science Daily, 02/2010). Although there are many causes and possible complications for premature birth, there are also preventions that can decrease the likelihood.
When it comes to pregnancy, expectant mothers usually have a lot of questions and concerns. One such concern is alcohol consumption. Some people feel that it is okay while others are against the consumption. However those who drink take a huge risk that can result in what is referred to as Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD). This umbrella term is used to describe the range of damage from alcohol exposure to a fetus. The characteristics, diagnosis, and the mother are all important factors to look at when trying to understand these birth defects.
Substance abuse is a problem that exist all over the world, it’s affecting men, women, and children from all society level. Prenatal substance abuse remains a major problem in the United States and poses important health risk for a growing baby (Behnke & Smith, 2013). Treatment 4 addiction (T4a) mentioned approximately 2 to 3% of birth deficiency are the consequences of using other drugs than alcohol. Drug and alcohol or any other substances are recognized to have dangerous effect on the fetus. All drugs that that cross the placenta have somehow affected the fetus (Behnke & Smith, 2013).
A child is life’s finest gift, at times the most challenging, the most important one, and the one that teaches you, your most significant lessons.
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...
Alcohol, also known as ethanol, is a legal substance, which causes a person to become relaxed and “care-free”. Once alcohol is consumed, it is released into the bloodstream, which causes the brain to react, causing side effects. When a woman drinks alcohol while being pregnant, it can cause some physical and mental damage to the fetus. When a fetus is affected by alcohol exposure, it is called Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). If the affects are severe, it is then termed Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). The abnormalities occur in the central nervous system, facial structure, growth, and neurobehavioral development of the child. Severity of the damage depends on the amount of consumption, frequency, and timing of the consumption (Ungerer, Knezovich and Ramsay, 2013). Approximately 1 in 100 births have FASD effects. In the United States, 2-7 out of 1000 births are affected by FAS. 2-5% of young children in the United States and Western Europe are affected by FASD, while in Italy, the rate of FASD is 20.3-40.5 per 1000 births (Riley, Infante, Warren, 2011). These results are happening because 10-20% of women in the United States, 40% in Uruguay, and 50% of Italy consume alcohol while pregnant (Valenzuela, Morton and Diaz, 2012).
Children can be effected by their caregiver’s alcohol and substance abuse in numerous ways. 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...
“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.
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.