Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
According to Lewis Wolpert in the text, Gastrulation is one of the early stages of embryological development. Wolpert’s point was that if you mess up in early development, you will have problems from
then on. It is a known fact that early stages of brain development are critical. A developing brain is vulnerable to malnutrition, toxic chemicals, and infections that will produce problems in later stages of life.
An infant brain is highly vulnerable to the damage of alcohol. When a mother drinks heavily during pregnancy the child is likely to be born with what is known as fetal alcohol syndrome. The way this develops is by alcohol passing across the placenta to the fetus. There is no "safe" amount of alcohol that can be ingested and not have affect on the fetus. Alcohol use has shown to be most harmful during the first 3 months of pregnancy, but drinking at all during a pregnancy can have serious consequences. A child with fetal alcohol syndrome can develop/have: hyperactivity, impulsiveness, difficulty maintaining attention, varying degrees of mental retardation, motor problems, heart defects, and facial abnormalities.
Studies show that when a child with fetal alcohol syndrome reaches adulthood they are more likely to develop an increase risk of alcoholism, drug dependency issues, depression, and other psychiatric problems.
The book mentions that the mechanism of fetal alcohol syndrome probably relates to apoptosis.
This is a sad disorder that is occurring in infants, when in all honesty can be easily prevented. I wish that the moms to be, who put their children at risk really knew all the consequences of drinking through their pregnancy...or maybe they don't even care?
Here is a video of one family and how they deal with fetal alcohol syndrome:
Fetal alcohol syndrome is 100% preventable. I hope more people can be aware of the consequences and take a second thought before they drink while being pregnant!
I liked your post because all it takes to stop this disability is to educate the moms about what could happen to their child if they consume alcohol during pregnancy. How many moms going through this would give anything to go back and make a different choice. I was very glad that you posted this on your blog I hope more people will see this post and learn from it. I know I did. Good Job.
ReplyDeleteWow! Very informative, even though I've read it through the book, you definitely made it interesting to keep reading. I am glad that you put the picture of the compared brains. It shows just how affected the fetus can be! How scary and realistic for those who have been unaware of the damage of FAS.
ReplyDeleteThe picture and video you included in your post really showed the devastating effects of drinking during pregnancy. After a bit further research of the video, I learned that the mother in the video is his adoptive mother. I'm glad that his adoptive mother cares for Iyal much more than his biological mother did. Obviously the biological mother didn't care enough for him to stay sober long enough throughout pregnancy. I agree with how you say that fetal alcohol syndrome is completely preventable and how some mothers just probably don't care. They definitely do know of the consequences, even if they are uneducated. I believe it's common knowledge / common sense not to drink during pregnancy -- it's not rocket science! Alcohol is the one of the most abused and addictive substances. I honestly believe there should be some sort of test or examination parents are required to take before they actually try becoming parents. I know that may sound bad to some people, but it's just my opinion.
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