Monday, April 28, 2008

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)

Alcohol (wine, beer, or liquor) is the leading known preventable cause of mental and physical birth defects in the United States.

When a woman drinks alcohol during pregnancy, she risks giving birth to a child who will pay the price — in mental and physical deficiencies — for his or her entire life.

Yet many pregnant women do drink alcohol. It's estimated that each year in the United States, 1 in every 750 infants is born with a pattern of physical, developmental, and functional problems referred to as fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), while another 40,000 are born with fetal alcohol effects (FAE).

Yet what makes me wonder is how irresponsible can be the mother of the child knowing all the risks of having alcohol during pregnancy. I want to know if anyone has any comments

1 comment:

eric said...

here's FAS's symptoms...
# low birth weight
# small head circumference
# failure to thrive
# developmental delay
# organ dysfunction
# facial abnormalities, including smaller eye openings, flattened cheekbones, and indistinct philtrum (an underdeveloped groove between the nose and the upper lip)
# epilepsy
# poor coordination/fine motor skills
# poor socialization skills, such as difficulty building and maintaining friendships and relating to groups
# lack of imagination or curiosity
# learning difficulties, including poor memory, inability to understand concepts such as time and money, poor language comprehension, poor problem-solving skills
# behavioral problems, including hyperactivity, inability to concentrate, social withdrawal, stubbornness, impulsiveness, and anxiety