The Effects Of Prenatal Drugs On Children 's Central Nervous System

The use of heroin, cocaine, and other illicit drugs has become a public health concern especially during pregnancy. Maternal substance abuse has become an issue during the crack epidemic in the 1980’s; however, there is an alarm rate of infants born addicted to heroin. More than 3.7% women have indicated the uses some form of illicit drugs during their pregnancy, as well as 1.9 % reports binge drinking (Bhuvaneswar el at., 2008; Grant el at., 2009). With this in mind, more than 375,000 infants are born to maternal substance abusers each year costing over $100,000 in medical expenses covered by the state (Reitman, 2002).

Prenatal exposure of a child to harm due to the mother’s use of an illegal drug or other substance.

When America came through the 1980’s heroin and cocaine were being used very often, and then other drugs started to come about like Ecstasy and crack (newsnarconon, 2009). Crack was the alternative to cocaine because it was cheaper to buy, but it was also highly addictive (newsnarconon, 2009). Crack became so popular because it could be smoked instead of snorted, and when it was smoked, it would absorb more quickly across the blood brain barrier, in about six seconds (newsnarconon, 2009). Crack then became a huge because of how cheap it was and that is when “crack babies” we being born, which were babies who were

The risk of having a miscarriage in the first trimester of pregnancy is twice for expecting mothers who take cocaine at this time as compared to those who do not. Latest research has confirmed that cocaine use can result in pre term labor and can cause severe brain damage to the baby.

During 1984 through 1994, 10 years into The Crack Epidemic, the homicide rate of African American males aged 14-17 doubled. Along with an increase of African American children in foster care, fetal death rates and weapon arrests. Roles lost in families and the community. Health and lifestyle of the African American communities depleting due to the powerful affects of crack cocaine. The African American community has been significantly affected by The Crack Epidemic in the areas of health and culture as a result of where the source of crack cocaine introduced itself in America, laws surrounding crack cocaine and the perception of the drug.

Through the years, substance misuse in the United States has turned into an industrious issue influencing numerous people. In 2008, it was assessed that 17.8 million Americans beyond 18 years old where substance subordinate. Women who use medications during pregnancy can have an enduring impact on fetal. Medications can have an impact of maternal and child wellbeing, yet there are a lot of different variables, which influence it, poor social environment, nourishment, cleanliness, and sexual abuse. Regenerative interruption connected with heroin utilization has been shown in both and women and even low dosages of opiates can impede ordinary ovarian capacity and ovulation. The harm that goes hand in hand with substance utilization comes either straightforwardly from the impact of the medication itself or from issues identified with development and/or unexpected labor. The entanglements of jumbling components clamorous way of life, poor nourishment, liquor utilization and cigarette smoking influence the appraisal of the impacts of cocaine in pregnancy. In obstetric practice, 100% of pregnant women utilizing cocaine or heroin are cigarette smokers. Cigarette smoking is presumably the most well known manifestation of substance utilizes and is noteworthy corresponding considering ladies who use unlawful medications. Babies whose moms smoked in pregnancy have a tendency to have lower conception weights and diminished length, cranial and thoracic

The use of controlled substances throughout pregnancy is a very prevalent issue among society today. Controlled substances have devastating effects on not only the mothers using the substances, but also infants while they are in utero and after they are born. Many infants born to mothers, who are abusing drugs, suffer from life threatening illnesses and are forever affected through adulthood. Specifically, heroin is a common drug form that is often used during pregnancy and results in the life threatening effects mentioned above.

Growing up in the household under substances influence can cause severe damage to the child. Parental substance abuse has a significant impact on family function, and it may also contribute to child maltreatment. It heightens the risks to both of the physical and emotional safety of the children, and it generates children’s problematic outcomes. Children who grow up in such families may also experience mental health issues, social isolation, financial difficulties, and exposure to stressful life events and so on.

Roberts’s response fails to satisfy the individuals that cocaine affects the most. Fetal endangerment requires further study and Roberts fails to identify the “amalgam of racial and class biases” (Kennedy, 1997, p.361) in illicit drug use to determine who is in

The movie depicted Isiah as a toddler, Isiah showed signs of behavioral issues; he showed patterns of hyperactivity, agitation, and emotional problems. However, According to “The Truth about Crack/Cocaine and Children (Waller1993),” research shows that when the fetal brain is exposed to crack cocaine in the first trimester, the development and the harm of the pre-frontal cortex in several ways. Crack cocaine’s a highly addictive drug, according to the National Institute on drug abuse (April 2013), cocaine produces short term euphoria, talkativeness, rapid heart rate, and high blood pressure. Cocaine can be injected intravenously, smoke, or snorted through the nose.

The Adoption Encyclopedia “ Estimates of the percentage of pregnant women using cocaine have ranged from 10% to as high as 28% in some areas.” Cocaine is one of the oldest drugs known to man. This is a powerfully addictive stimulant, and is derived from coca leaves, and this drug has been abused for thousands of years. Crack Cocaine's worst damage to the fetus is its effect on the brain. It causes the brain's of both the mother and the fetus to experience the typical surge of dopamine. Since the fetal brain is still in the process of development, it can result in serious psychological addiction, attention deficit disorders, lack of cognitive abilities and developmental problems. Also crack's effects on the fetus result in seizures. Babies that are exposed to crack are at increased risk of birth defects, which include heart deformities. Crack causes an unborn baby to have a stroke or a heart attack. Cocaine abuse by mothers during pregnancy is linked with abnormalities in the development of the heart both before and after birth. Crack Cocaine

It has been reported that gestational exposure to cocaine results in long-term reductions in metabolic activity in the hypothalamus and limbic regions postnatally. There is also a reduced responsiveness to a catecholaminergic challenge, and an increase in the affinity of

The first two weeks of pregnancy are a critical time during this period major organs start the development process. The use of illegal drugs such as, methamphetamine, cocaine or heroin during pregnancy can potentially lead to a profound effect on both mother and baby. The drugs can be transmitted from the mother to baby through the placenta. As a result, mother could suffer a miscarriage, premature labor and hemorrhaging, additionally her ability to make rational decisions can be impaired. Potential effects for the baby; low birth weight, organs not properly functioning,

As soon as birth, children are exposed to new things; new life experiences that will develop the path of which direction their life will take. Adolescence is the most important time in a child’s life because it is where they learn appropriate behavior from their family and the outside world. Some children are able to use these experiences to differentiate at an early age what is right and what is wrong and hopefully carry this into adulthood. What happens when children are exposed to the wrong experiences at an early age? What happens if children assume that what they are seeing is okay because one of their parents are

Children can be subjected to the negative effects of parental substance use in a variety of different ways. For example, substance use during pregancy can cause detrimental outcomes for newborn infants by placing them at a higher risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), being born with birth defects, developing behavioral and developmental delays, being born premature, etc. Children with addicted parents, are placed at a higher risk of: lacking appropriate supervision; lacking basic needs such as: food, clothing, housing, and medical care; exposure to violence; developing substance abuse issues themselves.