Abstract
Pregnancy is one of the periods that a woman needs to take care of herself and the baby. There are many factors that affect the growth and development of the fetus. Whether taking small or large amount of alcohol during pregnancy affects the unborn child is one of the modern topics under research. The reality that people need to understand is that, when a pregnant woman consumes alcohol the unborn child also gets some percentage. The executive function of the human brain is very important. Studies show that children who have been exposed to alcohol during pregnancy cannot undertake executive functions. Alcohol consumption during pregnancies interrupts the functioning and interaction of fetal and maternal hormones. In critical analysis, the health of the fetus fully depends on the mother. Alcohol is always dangerous to the health of every human being. Alcohol consumption during pregnancy should be eliminated with absolute measures. It is the responsibility of parents a government to ensure that pregnant women do not consume alcohol.
Pregnancy is one of the periods that a woman needs to take care of herself and the baby. There are many factors that affect the growth and development of the fetus. It is worth noting that the mother needs to understand all the issues related to pregnancy; this includes nutrition, diet, exercise, lifestyle, as well as psychological. Taking of alcohol during pregnancy is one of the controversial and debatable issues that require further research. There are diverse views on pregnancy and alcohol. Those against alcohol during pregnancy assert that taking alcohol during pregnancy affects the growth and development of the baby. Those in support believe that taking alcohol does not harm the fetus in any way. Such controversial issues seem calls for further research on the topic. Whether taking small or large amount of alcohol during pregnancy affects the unborn child is one of the contemporary topics under research. In the general perspective, a lot of evidence has been raised regarding the harmful effects of alcohol during pregnancy.
For many years, women have been told that taking alcohol during pregnancy can cause adverse effects on the unborn child. In fact, when a pregnant woman walks into the bar they always get suspicious stare. The issue of alcohol during pregnancy should not be neglected; this is because the life of the unborn child is very important (Finnigan, Inch & Lee, 2000). The growth and development of a child begin from conception and anything that may alter this growth and development should be eliminated. A lot of studies have been carried out, and most of them seem to concur on the effects of alcohol during pregnancy.
The reality that people need to understand is that, when a pregnant woman consumes alcohol the unborn child also gets some percentage. Therefore, taking of alcohol is harmful to the health and development of the unborn baby. One of the effects of alcohol during pregnancy is exposing the unborn baby to FASD (fetal alcohol spectrum disorder) (King & Brucker, 2011). This refers to the full spectrum if the birth defects brought about by consumption of alcohol during pregnancy. Studies show that approximately 40, 000 babies in the United States are born with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders every year. American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology assert that pregnant women should not consume any alcohol. Those women who consume should be aware of the negative effects alcohol has on the unborn child. Prenatal exposure to alcohol is the main cause of birth defects.
Based on the global perspective, many children are always born with many defects caused by prenatal exposure to alcohol. Alcohol is poisonous to the unborn child regardless of the fact that adult consumes it. It is evident that the ingestion of any alcoholic beverages is harmful to the health of the baby. People neglect the issue of alcohol consumption during pregnancy yet its damages can be permanent (Blocker, Fahey & Tyrrell, 2003). The ignorance that people have can be costly to the entire life of a child. The issue of taking small level of alcohol during pregnancy is still risked since no evidence has been brought about regarding the safe level of alcohol consumption during pregnancy. In addition, there is no safe period of taking alcohol during pregnancy.
Consumption of alcohol during pregnancy damages the mind. This is very big problem to the life of the child since it hinders cognitive development leading to mental retardation. It is evident that taking of alcohol during pregnancy causes specific behavioral and cognitive impairments. The reality of the effects is based upon various research carried out to generalize the impairment caused by alcohol on the mental functioning (Broder, 2004). One of the neurobehavioral impairments includes verbal learning. It is evident that children who were exposed to alcohol during pregnancy have various problems with memory and language. Studies show that children who were not exposed to alcohol during the prenatal period of pregnancy learn more words compared to those exposed to alcohol during pregnancy. On a positive note, all children exhibit the same ability in recalling information that was learned previously.
Prenatal exposure to alcohol is also harmful to the child since it affects their attention. Studies show that children suffering from fetal alcohol spectrum find it very difficult to shift from one activity to another. Despite the fact that such children maintain attention and focus, they lack set shifting in their entire life (King & Brucker, 2011). On the same note, prenatal alcohol exposure increases the reaction time of the child and slows down information processing. This is based on the fact that alcohol affects the movement of the eyes of the child; hence, hindering eye movement, appearance, as well as disappearance of repeated sequence. Therefore, prenatal exposure to alcohol is harmful in the sense that the information processing is inefficient.
The executive function of the human brain is very important. Studies show that children who have been exposed to alcohol during pregnancy cannot undertake executive functions. In this case, executive functions include organizing and planning. These are activities that require abstract thinking (Golden, 2004). For example, it is very difficult for a child exposed to alcohol; during pregnancy to shift from naming the types of animals to naming vehicles. This is based on the fact that they develop behavioral inflexibility.
Exposing a child to alcohol during pregnancy is also dangerous because it causes developmental and growth delay. This is because alcohol hinders the developmental hormones of the child before it even matures. On the same note, alcohol exposure during prenatal pregnancy causes unusual facial features. In the first three months of pregnancy, there is high risk of taking alcohol because it leads to various structural defects. This means that the physical formation of the unborn child is damaged by alcohol in the early months of pregnancy (Lamb, 2001). The facial feature of the unborn baby forms during the first three months, especially the facial structure while the cognitive development takes place throughout the pregnancy. Any alteration of facial growth and developments in the early stages of pregnancy will probably lead to facial changes and defect.
The nervous system of the unborn child forms through the pregnancy. This means that there is no safe period for a pregnant woman to take alcohol. Studies show that the exposure of alcohol during pregnancy is harmful to development of the fetus. For example, brain images show that fetal alcohol syndrome show that some parts of the brain are not developed, while the cells at some point are wrongly placed or have died (Finnigan, Inch & Lee, 2000). The damage of brain cells during pregnancy could lead to major cognitive problems in the future. Alcohol exposure damages basal ganglia leading to memory and set shifting impairment.
Fetal alcohol syndrome leads to underweight among children. In some situations alcohol may cause easily childbirth. This implies that the child has not received all the period in the mother’s womb to grow. Some of the features realized on some of the underweight newborn child include thin upper lip, small eye opening, small head, as well as flattened nose. The deformation of facial and head features means that the brain did not fully develop. In fact, a common brain problem is the reduction if cerebellum, which is a brain structure involved in cognition, gait, balance, and coordination. In addition, prenatal exposure to alcohol leads to complete absence of corpus callosum. This is a crucial part of the rain that enhances communication link between the left and the right part of the brain.
The organs of the unborn child are at high risk due to prenatal exposure of alcohol. It is worth noting that the development of body organs takes place in the second half of the pregnancy period. This means that the liver and other body organs will be damaged since it cannot process the alcohol (King & Brucker, 2011). The damage of liver and other body organs reduces the survival chances of the child. On the same note, the more the pregnant woman consumes alcohol, the more the unborn child is exposed to lifetime risks. The health of the unborn baby depends on the diet and what the mother consumes. Hence, excessive drinking could lead to death of the child during birth or after birth.
The complications may also be seen on the infant. One of the complications that a mother can go through due to excessive alcohol consumption during pregnancy is premature delivery, stillbirth or miscarriage (Broder, 2004). These are critical complications that must not be ignored. Stillbirth puts the life of the mother at risk, and at the same time takes away the life of the child. Miscarriage also means that the fetus will not survive, and affects the psychology of the mother.
Alcohol consumption during pregnancies interrupts the functioning and interaction of fetal and maternal hormones. The alcohol can lead to impaired hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in the mother (Spohr & Steinhausen, 1996). The mother will not be in a position to regulate the body exposure to stress. This is a clear indication that alcohol consumption during pregnancy hinders the functioning of fetal and maternal endocrine balance and endocrine system.
In critical analysis, the health of the fetus fully depends on the mother. Alcohol is always dangerous to the health of every human being. Excessive consumption affects body organs and normal functioning of the body (Blocker, Fahey, & Tyrrell, 2003). A pregnant woman who consumes a lot of alcohol is putting her life at risk. In some occasions, it may lead to organ failure and damage among adults. This means that the health of the mother will be at risk, and if anything happens to the mother the unborn child is not safe at all.
On the other hand, other people assert that small consumption of alcohol does not affect the health of the child or the mother. There are various studies carried out that show that there is no link between alcohol and pregnancy problems. This is based on the fact that children who are exposed to prenatal alcohol and does that are not exposed have the same growth and development characteristics (Golden, 2004). Regardless of the opposing view, it is evident that alcohol consumption during pregnancy is very dangerous. It is worth noting that the exact mechanisms that focus on alcohol-induced fetal problems have not been specifically established.
In conclusion, alcohol consumption during pregnancy should be eliminated with absolute measures. It is the responsibility of parents a government to ensure that pregnant women do not consume alcohol. It is evident that the law grants everyone the right to choose what they want to do with their life, which include taking of alcohol. It is the responsibility of pregnant women to ensure that the health of the unborn is guaranteed. Nevertheless, responsible stakeholders should undertake informative training on issues related to prenatal alcohol consumption. This is because alcohol consumption causes also of devastating impacts to the unborn child. It makes no sense to give birth to a baby who will never be happy. The effects of alcohol consumption can be eliminated only by stopping consumption of alcohol. One of the main problems of prenatal exposure to alcohol is that it causes fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. This disorder affects the growth and development of the unborn child. Other critical effects include miscarriage, stillbirth, disruption of hormonal balance, facial abnormalities, damages organs, behavioral disorders, learning disorders, restricted growth, premature delivery, cerebral palsy, heart defects, communication problems, as well as cognitive impairments. Some people say that there is safe period to consume alcohol during pregnancy, yet in the real sense there is no safe period. The growth and development of the unborn child take place in the entire pregnancy period. In the general perspective, alcohol is harmful to the unborn child. Prenatal exposure to alcohol should be stopped by all means. The fact that many pregnant women still expose the unborn children to alcohol means that more reassert should be carried out. The next generation should be born health, both in body and mind.
References
Blocker, J. S., Fahey, D. M., & Tyrrell, I. R. (2003). Alcohol and temperance in modern history: An international encyclopedia. Santa Barbara, Calif: ABC-CLIO.
Broder, M. S. (2004). The panic-free pregnancy: [an OB/GYN separates fact from fiction on food, exercise, travel, pets, coffee, medications, and other concerns you have when you are expecting]. New York: Berkley Pub. Group.
Finnigan, D., Inch, S., & Lee, A. (2000). Therapeutics in pregnancy and lactation. Abingdon: Radcliffe Medical.
Golden, J. L. (2004). Message in a bottle: The making of fetal alcohol syndrome. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
King, T. L., & Brucker, M. C. (2011). Pharmacology for women's health. Sudbury, Mass: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.
Lamb, K. (2001). Pregnancy. Austin, TX: Raintree Steck-Vaughn.
Spohr, H.-L., & Steinhausen, H.-C. (1996). Alcohol, pregnancy and the developing child. Cambridge, Angleterre: Cambridge University Press.
