The Irreversible Damage Caused by Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

A pregnant woman's lifestyle ultimately affects the development of her baby. Excessive exposure to alcohol during pregnancy can inflict serious, permanent physical and mental damage on her child. When a pregnant woman drinks alcohol she is making her child drink also. In knowing how Fetal Alcohol Syndrome can be prevented, what the symptoms are, and who and what make up the risk factors fetal alcohol syndrome can be better understood.

The National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome states "Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is the name given to a group of physical and mental birth defects that are the direct result of a woman's drinking during pregnancy" (NOFAS 1). Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is the only disease that is one hundred percent preventable if the mother refrains from drinking while pregnant. Drinking liquor at all during pregnancy is not advisable. There is no way of measuring how much alcohol one can consume before defects occur, and no proof that small amounts of liquor are safe. As little as one drink a day can cause a baby some degree of harm and interfere with their normal development.

The more the mother drinks the greater the risk of damage to the baby. "The Syndrome occurs in anywhere from point five to three live births per thousand in western countries…It is estimated that between thirty and forty percent of all woman who drink heavily during pregnancy will have a child afflicted with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome…Fetal Alcohol Syndrome outranks Down's Syndrome in prevalence and is the leading case of mental retardation" (Britanica 1). Once the damage is done it cannot be undone. Babies who are born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome suffer symptoms that are permanent. Without a doubt the easiest way t...

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...ceptible to the effects of alcohol as it tries to get its nutrients from the liquor. The dangers of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome are entirely preventable if the pregnant mother abstains from drinking alcohol while pregnant.

There is no known cure for Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. The series of physical and mental defects that comprise this Syndrome are irreversible.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is the only cause of birth defects that are totally one hundred percent preventable. Drinking any amount of alcohol during pregnancy is not advisable. Through education and intervention these defects can be stopped. Knowing who is at risk and how to prevent it is the first step. It is everyone's responsibility to encourage friends and family not to drink while pregnant. Nine months of drinking alcohol by the mother can cause a lifetime of irreversible damage for the child.