Being pregnant and having alcohol consumption can harm your baby’s growth and causes mental and physical deficiencies in the baby.
One of the most common deficiencies that occur due to alcohol consumption in the pregnancy period is fetal alcohol syndrome.
When a pregnant woman consumes alcohol, it enters the placenta freely and harms the fetus growth. Thus, the condition results in fetal alcohol syndrome.
It is a serious, irreversible, lifelong health condition that affects the baby terribly.
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is characterized by a group of problems including mental retardation, abnormal facial features, developmental problems, problems with central nervous system, and birth defects.
Remember that there is no safe level of alcohol consumption recommended for a pregnant woman during pregnancy. Also, there is no harmless period for a pregnant woman to take alcohol during pregnancy.
On the other hand, the timing of alcohol consumption also affects the fetal development during pregnancy. Alcohol consumption during the first trimester of pregnancy is more damaging than second trimester, which is, in turn, more harmful than during the third trimester of pregnancy.
It is found that, in the United States, one out of every seven hundred and fifty babies will born with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS).
You can identify this condition (fetal alcohol syndrome) through some signs. Babies born with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) will have low birth weight and will be shorter than normal. They also have developmental retardation and abnormal functioning of the organs.
Facial abnormalities such as microcephaly (small head), nose defect, an immature groove between the nose and the upper lip (smooth philtrum), unusual-appearing eyes, and compressed cheekbones can occur.
Heart defects such as ventrical septel defects (VSD) or atrial septal defects (ASD) also occur.
Mental abnormalities such as memory loss, concentration difficulty (loss of concentration), attention span, trouble learning, talking, and hearing can occur. Other conditions such as limb abnormalities and epilepsy also develop in the baby born with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS).
Remember that the sooner you stop consuming alcohol, the better the health of you and your baby.
So, if you consume alcohol without aware of your pregnancy or taken during pregnancy, it is good to consult your gynecologist right away for early diagnosis because it helps minimize the chances of developing long-term deficiencies in newborns with fetal alcohol syndrome.
Diagnosing the fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is not feasible before a baby is born. Instead, the doctor can assess the condition of both you and your baby during pregnancy.
The doctor can determine the risk of fetal alcohol syndrome in your baby using the timing and amount of alcohol consumption.
The doctor also tries to find signs and symptoms of fetal alcohol syndrome in the newborn baby during the initial weeks and months. In some cases, the doctor makes use of tests such as IQ test and language development tests to diagnose the fetal alcohol syndrome in the baby.
Remember that there is no cure for fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). However, it is hundred percent preventable when alcohol consumption is avoided throughout pregnancy.
Can I ask anyone the question . Could there be a connection between Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Tourettes Syndrome ?? ie. can a child whose mother is an alcoholic develop Tourettes in childhood ??
Hi Niall,
Tourettes Syndrome is no way related to Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. In fact, Tourettes Syndrome is a inherited neurological disorder, and the exact cause of this syndrome is still unknown.