Heading Logo


Published: May 13, 2003 8:00 PM

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is among the leading cause of birth defects today in the United States. When a pregnant woman drinks alcohol so does her baby. If the mother drinks alcohol it enters her blood stream and then the placenta. The mothers blood supplies the developing baby with nourishment and oxygen through the blood vessels in the placenta. If the mother drinks alcohol it enters the placental and the blood supply of the growing baby, and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome usually results.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, F.A.S. for short, is considered the most common nonhereditary cause of mental retardation. In addition to the deficits in general intellectual functioning, individuals with F.A.S. often demonstrate difficulties with learning, memory, attention, and problem solving as well as problems with mental health and social interactions. Thus these individuals and their families face persistent hardships in virtually every aspect of life.

F.A.S. is a lifelong yet completely preventable set of physical, mental neurobehavioral birth defects associated with alcohol consumption during pregnancy. As many as 12,000 infants are born each year with F.A.S. A neurologically injured child is unable to meet expectations of parents, family, peers, school, and career and can endure a lifetime of failures. The largest cause of neurological damage in children is again prenatal exposure to alcohol. These children grow up to become adults and often the neurological damage goes undiagnosed, but not unpunished. They can become the forgotten kids, as they have nearly invisible disabilities. They have their arms and legs, can see and hear, run, play, etc. but most have never been to a birthday party or a sleepover. They are the last to be chosen to play and first to be blamed. Their illnesses are not fatal, but a small part of their hearts and souls die with every rejection. Their behaviors may seem odd or unpredictable to themselves as much as society. This all falls back on the mother that chooses to take that drink of alcohol while pregnant.

F.A.S. is a lifetime disability. It is not curable. A child does not grow out of it. However, early diagnosis and intensive and appropriate intervention can make an enormous difference in the prognosis for the child. There is a small window of opportunity, up to about age 10 to 12, to achieve the greatest potential for an alcohol affected child. That period is when the greatest development of fixed neural pathways occurs. That is when alternative coping pathways are most easily built as work-around to damaged areas of the brain. Time is of the essence in intervention and treatment. But Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and its problems can be prevented when a mother chooses NOT to drink alcohol.

(Tina Barlow is a Noble County resident.)

Rate this article
