Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is thought to be one of the leading causes of birth defects. When a woman consumes alcohol during pregnancy, the alcohol passes from her blood to the baby’s blood through the umbilical cord and causes the baby to “drink” the alcohol also. The baby breaks down the alcohol more slowly than the mother does, and therefore the alcohol remains in the baby’s blood longer. Drinking alcohol during a pregnancy can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, and FAS in the child. Since the baby’s brain is constantly developing, alcohol exposure at any time during pregnancy can cause damage to the central nervous system.
Since FAS is under-diagnosed, it is important to be able to recognize the characteristics. There are numerous symptoms of FAS which can include physical and mental complications. The effects of the alcohol may cause growth retardation and when born, the baby may have a small head size, shorter height, and low birth weight. Often the baby will have abnormal facial features, such as small eyes, short nose, flattened cheeks, and flattened philtrum (ridge between the nose and upper lip). As a baby, the child may also have problems sleeping. Besides these physical features, a child with FAS may have some of the following mental problems: mental retardation, hyperactive behavior, learning …show more content…
However, although the article says that “there is no proof that drinking by a father can cause FAS in his child,” the textbook, page 111, states that there is evidence that the father’s consumption of alcohol around the time of conception may alter gene expression, and therefore effect symptoms in the baby. The textbook gives three types of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, including FAS, which is the most severe, and p-FAS (partial fetal alcohol syndrome, caused by lighter amount of drinking), and ARND (alcohol-related neurodevelopment disorder, which mainly affects mental
Since FAS is under-diagnosed, it is important to be able to recognize the characteristics. There are numerous symptoms of FAS which can include physical and mental complications. The effects of the alcohol may cause growth retardation and when born, the baby may have a small head size, shorter height, and low birth weight. Often the baby will have abnormal facial features, such as small eyes, short nose, flattened cheeks, and flattened philtrum (ridge between the nose and upper lip). As a baby, the child may also have problems sleeping. Besides these physical features, a child with FAS may have some of the following mental problems: mental retardation, hyperactive behavior, learning …show more content…
However, although the article says that “there is no proof that drinking by a father can cause FAS in his child,” the textbook, page 111, states that there is evidence that the father’s consumption of alcohol around the time of conception may alter gene expression, and therefore effect symptoms in the baby. The textbook gives three types of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, including FAS, which is the most severe, and p-FAS (partial fetal alcohol syndrome, caused by lighter amount of drinking), and ARND (alcohol-related neurodevelopment disorder, which mainly affects mental