Risks Alcohol Use Presents to Healthy Development During Pregnancy - Free Essay

When administered during pregnancy, particularly during the period of organogenesis, alcohol is known to be teratogenic to the human embryo. Alcohol affects the developing embryo and fetus. Heavy drinking of alcohol leads to fetal alcohol syndrome, high risks of spontaneous abortions for pregnant women in the first trimester, and, in the long term, even impacts their fertility. Studies show high alcohol intake impacts the developing embryo seriously. The malformations' risks and grievousness vary from FAS, which is apparent in 4-6% of babies of heavy-drinking pregnant women (Ornoy & Ergaz, 2010). However, there are still minor impacts like low birth weight, an inconsiderable reduction in infants' IQ, Intra-Uterine Growth Retardation, and high rates of congenital anomalies.

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Also, children born to alcohol-using women suffer postnatal long-term height deficits, microcephaly to facial dysmorphism. Alcohol consumption during pregnancy exposes the unborn to risk during birth. The unborn may suffer FAS (fetal alcohol syndrome), whereby the unborn has facial anomalies, from having a thin upper lip, flat midface, and smooth groove linking the nose and upper lip. More so, from a mother who drank heavily at birth, the unborn would be affected to have retardation in growth, behavioral and cognitive issues in their first years of development. In the long-term, risks associated with using this teratogen from women would be stillbirths, Miscarriages, and lifelong disabilities, which are behavioral, physical, and intellectual (Ornoy & Ergaz, 2010). The disabilities are referred to as fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. In the long run, babies with FASDs may display certain behaviors or traits:

• Poor coordination
• Poor attention
• Difficulty in class (common in complex subjects like math)
• Speech delays
• Small size of the head
• Low IQ
• Heart or kidney problems
• As a baby have sleep and sucking issues
• Vision problems
• Poor memory
• Hyperactive behavior

Considering the current literature on alcohol use during pregnancy, one would consider it a high risk during pregnancy. The reason is that you risk fetus development, and FASD is one of the major causes of developmental deficits in babies. Alcohol use will cause more harm to the baby as the alcohol tends to pass from the woman's blood into the unborn baby. The growth of the baby's cells may be affected or even completely damaged. Also, the spinal cord and brain cells may get damaged. For these deficits, it may vary from mild to severe. Alcohol use while pregnant can impact the child's life since, in some, the problems last forever, for instance, problems in behaviors or learning. In the long term also impacts the mother's health leading to more stillbirths, miscarriages and babies being born prematurely.

Evidence to back this information would be from a study done in 1973 by Dr. Kenneth Jones and Dr. David Smith, who assessed eight babies from women who were chronic alcohol users (Bhuvaneswar, Chang, Epstein, & Stern, 2007). The evaluation recognized the FAS syndrome that displayed deficiency in growth, babies having short statures, delays in development, fine-motor dysfunction, microcephaly, and facial dysmorphism. Alternatively, other babies from the study displayed joint and cardiac anomalies, cleft palate, and altered palmar creases. On the contrary, if alcohol use during pregnancy did not impact the unborn baby, the position would still stand that excessive alcohol use by mothers impacts their overall health. The reason is that they may be subjected to life term illnesses like high blood pressure, gestational diabetes, and nutritional deficiency.

Evolutions in professional opinions as related to alcohol use during pregnancy

Early studies in 1967 by Paul Lemoine, a French Pediatrician, identified alcohol use as a teratogen following a series of cases that focused on physical abnormalities at birth (Bhuvaneswar, Chang, Epstein, & Stern, 2007). The study indicated fetal alcohol syndrome, birth disorders, and neurodevelopmental problems associated with alcohol use while pregnant. Scholars' original position on the use of alcohol while pregnant still is adamant and not bound to change. It has even impacted more studies for more indistinct abnormalities that come with alcohol use during pregnancy. It has since widened the extent of responsibility subjected to women besides the scientific comprehension of the problem.

The use of alcohol as a teratogen for pregnant women was due to social influences other than medical. Women may find themselves in social environments that influence them to keep drinking in the name of taking wine with the notion that wine is a healthy choice. In contrast, the scientific stance is that no alcohol is safe during pregnancy as ethanol impacts fetal and maternal bodies (Meurk, Broom, Adams, Hall & Lucke, 2014). Besides, the position of alcohol use during pregnancy as being of high risk was due to political influences that had the public being informed of how to cut on alcohol while pregnant. The policies would communicate tactics to have mothers effectively cut on drinking alcohol. The women would be advised that still, wine is still not a "healthy" option as believed and that ethanol is teratogenic to their unborn babies.

References

Bhuvaneswar, C. G., Chang, G., Epstein, L. A., & Stern, T. A. (2007). Alcohol use during pregnancy: prevalence and impact. Primary care companion to the Journal of clinical psychiatry, 9(6), 455. DOI: 10.4088/pcc.v09n0608

Meurk, C. S., Broom, A., Adams, J., Hall, W., & Lucke, J. (2014). Factors influencing women's decisions to drink alcohol during pregnancy: findings of a qualitative study with implications for health communication. BMC pregnancy and childbirth, 14(1), 1-9. DOI: 10.1186/1471-2393-14-246

Ornoy, A., & Ergaz, Z. (2010). Alcohol abuse in pregnant women: effects on the fetus and newborn, mode of action and maternal treatment. International Journal of environmental research and public health, 7(2), 364-379. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph7020364