Pregnancy & Substance Abuse
Remaining healthy during a pregnancy is vital to the development of the child. In maintaining that health, pregnant women should refrain from illicit drug use, smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol. All of these habits can have detrimental effects on a developing fetus.
Other People Are Reading
-
Nicotine
-
According to the March of Dimes, cigarettes contain over 2,300 different chemicals that, when used during pregnancy, can result in pre-term delivery and low-birth weight, and increase the chances of serious health problems or chronic disabilities later in life.
Alcohol
-
Abuse of alcohol by pregnant mothers can lead to premature birth, low birth weight, a variety of physical and mental defects, and a number of fetal alcohol syndrome disorders, reports the the March of Dimes.
-
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
-
Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is a term used by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to identify the conditions found occurring among infants exposed to alcohol prior to birth: problems with eating, sleeping, hearing, eyesight, low-birth weight and underdevelopment.
Illegal Drugs
-
The American Pregnancy Association reports that abuse of illicit drugs while pregnant can result in miscarriage, premature labor, low birth weight, placental abruption (separation of the placenta from the lining of the uterus) and fetal death.
Misconceptions
-
All pregnancies are different: this means that if a substance-abusing mother used during one pregnancy and no harm resulted to the child, it should not be considered an indication that the same would result from substance abuse in a second pregnancy.
Expert Insight
-
There have not been any significant nor many conclusive studies performed on the effects of one-time or experimental use of illicit drugs during pregnancy.
-
