Teratogen Affects on Pregnancy

Oct 9, 2010

Textbook References:

Chapter 2 Teratogens: Drugs- smoking p 50 Part II

Chapter 2 Teratogens: Drugs- behavioral problem w/smoking p 51 Part II

Chapter 2 Teratogens: Drugs- Child Behavioral Problems w/drinking p.52 Part II

Chapter 2 Teratogens: Drugs- FAS p 51 Part II

There are many potential adverse effects of drugs on prenatal development. Drugs are not only dangerous to adults but to the baby as well if taken during pregnancy. These drugs are called teratogenic, also referred as teratogens. A teratogen is a substance that is
They found that although the study of FAS is ongoing, there were no new medical strategies that could help a fetus after it is exposed to alcohol. Our book claims that alcohol is a Teratogen, however the article questions whether it is or not. The article reads that there is no safe period to drink. It also says that not every woman who drinks will have a child that has FAS. According to our text, FAS is a pattern of abnormalities, including mental retardation and minor physical anomalies, often found in children born to alcoholic mothers. It affects 1 to 2 of every 1,000 infants in the U.S. but in the article it reads that it affects .2 to 1.5 in every 1,000. These numbers are pretty relative to each other. In both our text and the article, it clearly show’s that drinking alcohol during pregnancy can cause birth defects. The text says that heavy drinkers who are pregnant or alcoholic are born smaller than normal, with smaller brains. They are also born with distinct physical anomalies or deformities (flattened nose & nose bridge, and long space between nose and the mouth). Although these are some of the features, it is often difficult to diagnose. The article gives a more precise description of features that are related to FAS. They include