Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Research Paper

How many drinks are appropriate for a woman that is trying to conceive? Most would answer none. The consumption of alcohol can lead to various problems during and after pregnancy. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder is a condition which leads to various irreversible problems; it is considered to be poisonous because it causes great damage before conception, and most importantly, the developing embryo. The effect on the fetus varies; some are more affected than others. When the alcohol enters the body of a pregnant mother, it enters her bloodstream which travels pass the placenta to the fetus. It takes a significant amount of time for the fetus to absorb the alcohol—therefore, when a pregnant woman drinks heavily, the developing tissues and organs
Mental retardation is a serious condition which includes: development delay, growth deficiencies, and damage to the brain and nervous system. It is common sense for a pregnant woman to stop drinking, and “to drink regularly throughout pregnancy, it associates with a wide variety of problems in the offspring” (Murkoff, Eisenberg, & Hathaway, 2002, p. 57). The symptoms that result from this disorder is physical and mental. The physical symptoms include: low birth weight, small head circumference, facial abnormalities—such as small eyes and underdeveloped groove between the nose and upper lip—as well as deformities of joints, limbs, and fingers. The internal symptoms include: organ dysfunction, vision difficulties, hearing problems, and heart defects—such as ventricular septal defect or atrial septal defect. The mental symptoms include: poor co-ordination skills, learning disorders, abnormal behaviour—for example, short attention span, hyperactivity, poor impulse control, and extreme nervousness and anxiety—poor socialization skills, and overall, the ability to adapt in the world. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder is truly devastating. In
It is incurable and there is no specific treatment. With the fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, the mental and physical defects last for a lifetime. Of course, there are ways in helping a person cope and live a better life: heart problems may need surgery, learning problems may need specialized classes, and counselling may be provided for behavioural problems. There is no known diagnosis and the issues may intensify as the years pass. This is why it is extremely important for the family to support each other and help in terms of taking care of the child or patiently teaching them how to live independently. There is also an alternative disorder named alcohol-related neurodevelopment disorder. It refers to the same behavioural and emotional problems that are displayed in the fetal alcohol spectrum disorder—but the difference is there are no physical deficiencies. The problems will only occur internally but not on the external features of the child. Though in alcohol-related neurodevelopment disorder, the ability to succeed is also very hard to achieve because their behavioural problems override everything else. To act on the disorder as early as possible is highly important; the sooner the problems may be targeted, the more one can avoid. Once the problems are identified, further precautions may be made and the doctors are able to manage the disorder. The child is not the only one who