Pros And Cons Of Alcoholic Mothers

Many alcoholics are so preoccupied with their addictions, that issues and activities that were once of interest to them, are no longer a concern. The alcoholic then becomes oblivious to his responsibilities for his or her children. Children of alcoholics often suffer from neglect. According to the Children of Alcoholics Foundation, each year “1.2 million children are confirmed by state agencies as being victims of child neglect. Forty percent of these cases involve alcohol or drugs. This suggests that an estimated

may become unable or unwilling to adequately care for their children . Children often times experience a loss of parental availability and as a result, feel lonely and Isolated. More often

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

FAS is defined as a medical diagnosis involving four key features: alcohol exposure, growth deficiently, certain facial features, and brain damage. Infants who have been exposed to prenatal alcohol rarely show all symptoms of the medical condition FAS. Other terms have been used to describe the implication involved with FAS. Frequently used terms are: Partial Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Alcohol-related Neurodevelopmental Disorder and Alcohol-related Birth Defects. A child with Partial Fetal Alcohol syndrome exhibits only some of the physical signs of FAS and will likely have both learning and behavioral difficulties. A child suffering from Alcohol-related Neurodevelopmental Disorder will demonstrate signs of neural damage, problems with memory, poor social skills, and learning difficulties. Children diagnosed with

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is a pattern of mental, physical, and behavioral defects that may develop in the unborn child when its mother drinks during pregnancy. These defects occur primarily during the first trimester when the teratogenic effects of the alcohol have the greatest effect on the developing organs. The symptoms associated with FAS have been observed for many centuries, but it was not until 1968 that Lemoine and his associates formally described these symptoms in the scientific literature, and again in 1973 when Jones and associates designated a specific pattern of altered growth and dysmorphogenesis as the Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (Rostand, p. 302). The set of abnormalities characterized by Jones

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

An alcoholic parent can affect what a child thinks is morally acceptable because, they are more tolerant of misbehavior, and often are not very moral people themselves. Alcoholic parents may not often be present or in a stable state of mind, allowing their children to partake in the activities they choose, which are often bad for them. The parents are not conscientious enough to put down the actions, making the child think they are acceptable. Children of alcoholics are more likely to steal and be violent, use drugs and or alcohol, and be engaged in activities that are potentially dangerous ("Children Of Alcoholics | American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry"). They are being raised in an environment where they see this happening, and then imitate it, because that is how they think a person is allowed to act. Some children are just copying what they see their parents do. Alcohol may be the parents’ way to deal with the pressures of daily life, and children observe the use of alcohol as a coping mechanism, making

Pre-natal alcohol exposure is an established cause of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD), which is now recognized as the most common preventable cause of mental impairment in North America (Popova et al., 2013). Individuals with FASD experience a wide range of neurological and psychological disabilities caused by permanent brain alterations (Petrenko et al., 2014). The adverse health outcomes that arise from FASD have lifelong implications and pose a significant burden on the Canadian health care system (Popova et al., 2013). From a public health perspective, FASD presents a unique and complex challenge due to the specialized needs of those diagnosed with FASD, and the complexities of maternal alcohol use.

would not be able to live a normal life for the rest of its life. The

Through various articles and extensive research, it can be proven that prenatal alcohol exposure has a variety effects on people, children to be more exact. Prenatal alcohol exposure is the most widely recognized reason for mental retardation and the driving preventable reason for birth defects in the United States. Fetal alcohol syndrome is described by a mix of impeded development, face and body mutations, and disorders of the central nervous system. Behavioral, memory, and cognitive deficits are effects that is brought upon prenatal alcohol exposure. People should be more educated on the use of alcohol during pregnancy and its consequences.

Change of behavior caused by alcohols has negative impacts on one's surrounding and will, eventually, creates a rift among loved ones. Alcoholic can do anything without thinking for the future as long as they get the money to buy alcohol, ones may use the rental money for the house to buy alcohol and the worst case could happen is he loses his jobs. With this, drinker cannot be dependent on and divorce is inevitable as he could no longer support his family. Not few child abuse cases caused by alcoholic parents. Studies have shown that "2/3 of child abuse case involves alcohol" ("Facts about alcohol"). Family members also began to avoid friends, hide problems and cover up for the drinker as they are ashamed of their family member who is alcoholic. "More than one-half of American adults have a close family member who has or has had alcoholism" ("Dawson and Grant") Moreover, there is higher chances for their teenager child to be alcoholic too as they are used to seeing their parents drunk.

One of the most dangerous substances to human kind can be purchased for a reasonable price and consumed by the most unreasonable people. Alcohol, a psychoactive drug, found within many adult beverages causes countless problems for people suffering from addiction but even more devastating are the mothers who drink when pregnant. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is a disorder that refers to mental and physical effects of an individual whose mother consumed large quantities of alcohol during pregnancy. Alcohol can destroy neurons in a growing fetus along with causing problems with growth and weight. In the past, alcohol has been shown to be the number one leading factor in a raise of individuals suffering intellectual disabilities. The symptoms of the disorder are wide while the causes are quite limited. Many mothers may understand the effects of alcohol on a growing fetus and continuously ignore them, while others abstain completely to avoid any disabilities. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is a complex disorder that can be easily prevented by avoiding alcohol, yet it is still highly seen in modern day communities. The disorder can be distinguished easily from others because of its wide variety of symptoms. The causes of this disorder are also widely known to originate from a mothers use of alcohol and the effects on livelihoods have been documented. There are several treatments available for individuals suffering from this disorder and some may help restore normal lives to those

According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, results from several different studies they have conducted show that children from alcoholic families report higher levels of depression and anxiety. These same children also show more symptoms of stress than children from non-alcoholic families (Alcoholism). What these studies indicate is that if a child grows up in an atmosphere of constant alcohol consumption, the child has a higher likelihood of developing undesirable psychological disorders as they continue into adulthood. This apparently creates a never ending cycle of alcoholism within the family; however there were some positive results in these same studies.

According to A Population at risk, “Most studies confirm that children will mostly drink as their parents do-abuse alcohol drink moderate, drinking lightly, or abstain” (Children of Alcoholics, Birke). If a child sees you do something constantly they will think it’s okay. The article children of Alcoholics says “Children of Alcoholics have little or no choices but to adapt to the environment and the family in which they are raised. In the future affected children who go untreated may bring their troubles to adult relationships and family” ( Children of Alcoholics). Parents have a lack of respect for family and relationships so will the child. Alcoholic parents tend to lie just because they don’t want the