Phyllida Brown's Article Summary

The science behind FAS is quite simple; as it is known that alcohol has a damaging effect on the body, it has similar consequences on the fetus. Since the fetus is constantly developing, the alcohol causes more serious defects to the unborn child. Alcohol exposure to a fetus is known as a teratogen. “Teratogens are substances or conditions that disrupt typical development in offspring as a result of gestational exposure and cause birth defects.” (Wilson & Fraser, 1977). Although the exposure to alcohol causes problems in the fetus, studies have shown that it may not accurately be the alcohol in the mother’s system that causes these defects, rather the byproducts that form when the body metabolizes the alcohol. This can lead to a decrease in brain cells, abnormal location of neurons, and gross malformation to the brain. Since alcohol causes this central nervous system damage, it is classified as a neurobehavioral teratogen, which is a group of teratogens that cause brain damage and modify behaviors. (Riley & Vorhees, 1986). The CNS damage is the primary defect due to alcohol and it is quite common to have these damages without any physical abnormalities. The more alcohol that is consumed the more birth defects that will arise in the

Although throughout the United States activist and educational campaigns have flooded U.S citizens with education on the detrimental effects of maternal alcohol consumption, women are still continuing to consume alcohol while pregnant. Fifty three percent of non-pregnant woman drink alcohol, and despite health warnings, twelve percent of pregnant mothers in the United States still consume alcohol (Pruett &Waterman & Caughey, 2013, p. 62). Fetal alcohol exposure is also believed to be widely underreported in the United States (Pruett et al., 2013, p. 66). Current research concludes that there is no safe level of alcohol consumption, nor a safe time during gestation for alcohol consumption to take place (National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome [NOFAS], 2014). Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) is an umbrella term used for the various conditions that maternal alcohol consumption causes. Although each case of FASD can present differently, cognitive disabilities, facial deformities, and growth retention are a few of the hallmark adverse effects that alcohol has when it enters fetal circulation (Paley & O’Connor, 2011, p. 64). The United States is impacted economically by these debilitating conditions as well, as it costs our nation $746 million dollars annually to care for these children (Bhuvaneswar, Chang, Epstein & Stern, 2007, p. 3). Nurses in America, and across the globe have a key role in helping to eliminate, and minimize adverse effects of these conditions

Alcoholism is a real threat to pregnant women. In particular, there is a huge rise in Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) cases, which is when an unborn fetus actually becomes addicted to and dependent on alcohol passed from the mother. In 1996, only 0.5 to 3.0 cases were confirmed for every 1,000 pregnancies, but today, that number is a staggering 20 to 50 cases per 1,000

This paper explores the effects of prenatal alcohol exposure on motor development. With this topic, came many questions. They are: Is every child effected the same amount, or does it depends on how much the mother drank and how much the fetus was exposed to?, Is there anything the mother can do to reverse the effects of exposure, or perhaps lessen the damage on the child?, Is there a safe amount of alcohol that can be consumed without harm?, And lastly, do the effects of prenatal alcohol exposure ever go away? Coles et al. (2015) and Lucas et al. (2016) suggest answers and evidence to these questions. This paper explains what happens when a fetus is exposed to alcohol, and how it

As a result of pregnant women drinking, there have been a profuse amount of children born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Armstrong and Abel confirm that it wasn’t until 1973

National surveys show that about six out of every ten women of child-bearing age 18-44 years old use alcohol, and slightly less than one-third of women who drink alcohol in this age group binge drink. Excessive exposure to alcohol during pregnancy can inflict serious, permanent physical and mental damage on her child like Fetal Alcohol Spectrum disorders (FASDS), Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS), miscarriage, and premature birth. Although men are more likely to drink alcohol, and drink in larger amounts, gender differences in body structure and chemistry cause women to absorb more alcohol, and take longer to break it down and remove it from their bodies. Upon drinking equal amounts, women have higher alcohol levels in their blood than men, and

Attention-Getting Statement – Does anyone want to take a guess at what the nations leading preventable cause of developmental disabilities and birth defects?! Consuming alcohol during pregnancy

     Drinking during pregnancy is often thought of as no big deal. However, drinking during pregnancy is a very big deal. An unborn baby’s life is in the hands of the mother. If she decides to drink, she is risking the unborn’s chances of being as smart and healthy as it can be. Drinking during pregnancy opens the doors to a variety of harmful effects on the mother and her unborn baby, and until this is brought out in the open with honesty, it cannot be prevented.

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

Even though a number of things cause an IUGR drinking alcohol is one factor that can be prevented. During the first trimester of the pregnancy, the caregiver assesses the size of the pregnant woman’s uterus by doing a pelvic exam. After that the initial assessment of the uterus she checks the baby’s growth by measuring the belly at every prenatal visit, if the measurement is smaller than your due date an ultrasound is done to determine the weight and size of the baby, but sometimes the woman may have the date of her last period wrong, which will throw off the due date (Intrauterine growth restriction, 2012). Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is not genetically inherited but rather an acquired syndrome. This syndrome is a spectrum disorder; the child can have it very mild or extremely severe. Fetal alcohol syndrome is irreversible and has no cure; the child just undergoes treatment for the rest of his life. A study showed that about 30% of women in the U.S. drink alcohol during pregnancy (Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, 2011). This number will only continue if women are not educated about the effects of alcohol on the unborn child. If a woman is pregnant or plans to get pregnant she should not have a drink of alcohol not even a single drop during her term. Phil Petrosky an Ohio Department of Health employee says; “I would absolutely say there is no safe amount of alcohol at all during pregnancy.” If the pregnant woman did not know she was pregnant and drank alcohol, she should

Smoking and drinking not only damages the user’s body, but also causes mental and physical deformities of the fetus. Drinking alcohol and smoking while pregnant leads to brain damage and birth deformities of the newborn child. The chance of miscarriage increase along with the possibility of the baby being born early. A premature birth results in delayed comprehension, behavior problems, and lung deformities. Specifically, drinking while pregnant leads to growth problems and spinal damage to the infant. In the long-term the individual will need countless surgeries, braces, and pain medications. “Some research has shown that expectant moms who have as little as one drink a week are more likely than nondrinkers to have children who later exhibit aggressive and delinquent behavior.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) refers to a group of physical and mental birth defects resulting from a women’s drinking alcohol heavily or at crucial stages during pregnancy. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome was first named and treated in the late 1960's. This condition results from the toxic effect of alcohol and its chemical factors on the developing fetus. FAS is the leading cause of mental retardation occurring in 1 out of every 750 births. The frequency of FAS occurs about 1.9 times out of every 1000 births according to the latest figures, and minor effects can be seen in up to 20% of pregnancies per year. This number changes drastically for women who are clearly alcoholics. As high as 29 children out of every 1000 births will suffer from FAS

Based on the data of Samuels and other medical researchers, it becomes clear that less than 0.1% of all birth defects are related to alcohol, and that more than 90% of the affected children are born to women with a history of alcohol

Drinking can also cause the baby to be born with certain features that are different from a non-alcoholic pregnant woman such as being skinny and the head size being smaller than

Even a small amount of alcohol has the potential to hurt the child. The unborn child of a person who occasionally drinks is at risk of receiving fetal alcohol effects. This condition causes children to receive some of the same of the same effects that come from fetal alcohol syndrome. A child may not receive any of these conditions due to a mother’s alcohol consumption, but there are still some potential effects. Evidence shows that when a pregnant mother consumes an average of two alcoholic beverages per day, her child may have a lower amount of intelligence and is also at risk for having mental retardation. Also, there is research that suggests that even low quantities of alcohol consumed during pregnancy can have contrary effects on the child’s behavioral and psychological functions, and can cause a child to exhibit behaviors such as hyperactivity, unusual nervousness or anxiety, and poor impulse control. Alcohol consumption during pregnancy can also cause children to have less accuracy in their spatial and visual reasoning later in their lives. Due to these results, Sarah should be advised to not drink alcohol while she is