Development of Children Born with Drugs in Their System - Research Paper Example

According to Sachdeva et al (2009) two to three per cent of all birth defects result from substance abuse during pregnancy. These defects arise from the use of drugs and alcohol during pregnancy. Pregnant women are often discouraged from unnecessary use of substances during their term so as to avert negative consequences on their unborn children. A proper example of how substances taken by mothers affect unborn babies is that of the Thalidomide babies of the 1960’s where nearly 12,000 babies in 46 countries were born with defective limbs and internal organs. Thalidomide was a prescribed drug to relieve morning sickness in expectant mothers. The severity of substance use depends on three factors: stage of fetal development, the strength of the drug and its dosage (Sachdeva et al, 2009). Fetuses aged 3-8 weeks are highly vulnerable to birth defects due to the organogenesis that takes place during this period. Fetuses in their 9th week if exposed to substances may have dysfunctional growth and alteration of their organs and tissues. However damage to the fetus can occur at any time during the pregnancy not only during these periods. Physical effects of substance use include low birth weight, pre mature delivery, small head circumference, heart defects, abnormal bone development, auditory and visual problems, heart problems, kidney defects and withdrawal symptoms. Substances such as cocaine, heroin and alcohol are known to cause withdrawal symptoms in babies lasting from a few days to several months (Merredew, 2007). Withdrawal symptoms associated to cocaine in babies include irritability, feeding problems, sleeping problems, seizures and high pitched crying. Children born to cocaine taking mothers are often addicted to cocaine. The reason as to why unborn fetuses are easily affected by cocaine is due to the fact that cocaine easily and quickly crosses the placenta and is unprocessed during the mother-infant transfer. Children suffering from Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder portray symptoms similar to those of cocaine and also low/high muscle tone and sensitivity to stimulation. Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is a disorder where a pregnant mother consumes alcohol during her first trimester. The alcohol consumed is then passed onto the fetus and due to the fetus’s inability to process it concentrates in it leading to prevention of nutrition and deprivation of oxygen to key organs which consequently leads to low birth weight in the fetus. Children born with FASD are born with a small head, have an upturned nose, small wide spaced eyes, and a thin upper lip and have a smooth ridge between their upper lip and nose. Prenatal exposure to substances increases risks of premature births, miscarriages and still births. Exposure during organogenesis has greater chances of leading to the aforementioned. According to Shakran et al (2004) there is greater growth in children who were not exposed to cocaine as compared to children who were exposed and also persistent use of cocaine even in little quantities led to significantly low birth weight in children exposed to cocaine. Children born of women who used cocaine in moderate amounts had smaller head circumferences. Research shows that there is a correlation between fetal growth and birth weight and substance use of tobacco, alcohol, cocaine and marijuana. Children born of mothers who exposed them to the four substances gave birth to children of low birth weight, length and who had smaller head circumferences. According to an article published in Pediatrics magazine in 2009 any brain damage and how a child is affected depends on how often the mother abused the substance and the stage of development at the time of exposure. Psychological issues in children born to mothers who abused substances vary in their severity from mild to severe. They include mental retardation, problems in cognitive processes like abstract thinking, problem solving and speech, learning disabilities, difficulty in controlling their impulses and learning behaviors, lack of focus, attention and memory deficits and hyperactivity. Substance use alters the brain chemical function and development moving forward and impairs brain function leading to academic challenges. Cocaine specifically produces in children behavioral symptoms similar to attention deficit hyperactive disorder. Marijuana affects the ability of a child to pay attention and also contributes to development of learning disorders. Children born with FASD commonly have self esteem issues and feel stupid for not being able to grasp concepts as quickly as their counterparts and this consequently leads to anger, frustration and feelings of discouragement. According to a study carried out the University of California, Berkeley in March 2006 revealed that the language skills of children exposed to prenatal substance use had language skills problems. There was a direct correlation between prenatal exposure to cocaine and language functioning in children aged 4 ½ years old. Exposure to other substances other than cocaine such as marijuana and alcohol were also found to have a pronounced effect on language development. This exposure leads to deficits in language and decreased academic performance in language. Also according to the study, behavior wise, children exposed to cocaine were decreasingly less emotionally expressive. The study revealed that girls aged six years exposed to cocaine were more aggressive as compared to girls of the same age and who were not exposed to cocaine. Among boys the study revealed that those exposed to cocaine prenatally had a higher rate of hyperactivity and externalizing behaviors. Boys aged between 6-7 years of age who were exposed to both cocaine and alcohol demonstrated more delinquent behavior as compared to those only exposed to alcohol alone. Teachers interviewed during the study revealed more behavioral problems and motor skills problems with boys exposed to cocaine. The study also suggests a relationship between prenatal alcohol exposure and insecure attachments with primary caregivers. Children exposed to cocaine had lower rates of attachment at 18 months of age as compared to children who were not exposed to cocaine. Another key finding with regards to attachment was that children aged 1 year old that had been exposed to cocaine carried less in comparison to those who had not been exposed. Academically, no major differences were found among children exposed to substances prenatally and those who were not. The children were found to perform equivocally and had similar grade averages and reading abilities. References Shankran, S, Das, A., Bauer, C.R., Bada, H.S., Lester, B., Wright, L. L. et al (2004). Association between patterns of maternal substsance use and infant birth weight, length and head circumference. Pediatrics, 114(2), 226-234 Read More