How can alcohol and other drug problems be prevented? There is clearly no magic solution for preventing problems with alcohol and other drugs. Even so, over the years we have learned some important lessons that help us prevent abuse in the future. For example, we know that a person’s income-level, social status, and health have a lot to do with their ability to deal with life’s stresses without alcohol or drugs. People are more likely to be healthier and to feel more control over their life if they have
ALCOHOL AND OTHER DRUG INFORMATION FOR TEENS You'll hear everything there is to hear about alcohol, ecstacy, speed (meth, crystal), coke, heroin, inhalents, smoking.... So, like, what's the REAL story about drugs and alcohol? (And alcohol is definitely a drug, too...just like nicotine is!)
Alcohol and Other Drug-Related Birth Defects Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), a disorder characterized by growth retardation, facial abnormalities, and central nervous system dysfunction, is caused by a woman's use of alcohol during pregnancy.
Consequences of Prenatal Drug Exposure Researchers at the Yale Child Study Center prospectively obtained 124 urine samples from 122 children less than one year old for routine clinical indications from the Emergency Department at Yale-New Haven Hospital. Samples were analyzed by radioimmunoassay (RIA) for cocaine, with cross-reactivity for its major metabolite, benzoylecgogine (BE), using a threshold for detection of cocaine and BE that is lower than the current DHHS standard. The presence of cocaine or BE was presumed to indicate passive exposure to crack/cocaine. Of the 124 samples, 36.3 percent were positive (greater than or equal to 50ng/mL BE equivalents) for cocaine and/or BE. The positive samples were highly correlated with lower and upper respiratory symptoms and with seeking medical care more often. Lustbader, A.S., Mayes, L.C., McGee, B.A., Jatlow, P., and Roberts, W.L. Incidence of Passive Exposure to Crack/Cocaine and Clinical Findings in Infants Seen in an Outpatient Service, Pediatrics, (1 Part 1), E5, July 1998.
Drinking Can Hurt Your Baby-National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism If you drink alcohol, it can hurt your baby's growth. Your baby may have physical and behavioral problems that can last for the rest of his or her life. Children born with the most serious problems caused by alcohol have fetal alcohol syndrome.
Drug Use During Pregnancy Associated With Increased Risk of Transmitting HIV to Infants By Robert Mathias, NIDA Notes Staff Writer -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A national, multicenter study has found that HIV-infected women who used illicit drugs during pregnancy had a higher risk of transmitting HIV to their infants than did HIV-infected women who did not use drugs while pregnant. The study, known as the Women and Infants Transmission Study (WITS), was launched in 1989 by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) to track the natural history of HIV in infected women and their infants. The study currently is funded by NIAID, NIDA, and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
Fetal Alcohol and Drug Unit Fetal Alcohol Syndrome research unit, headed by Dr. Ann Streissguth, University of Washington. Website includes FAS resources, parent support groups worldwide, and the unit's findings.
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Research-based answers to such questions as: What is fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)? Can a single drink of alcohol cause FAS? Can a pregnant woman safely drink in moderation? Who is at greatest risk of having an FAS baby? How can we reduce FAS?
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is a pattern of mental and physical defects which develops in some unborn babies when the mother drinks too much alcohol during pregnancy. A baby born with FAS may be seriously handicapped and require a lifetime of special care.
Is Occasional Light Drinking During Pregnancy Harmful? In the last two decades more than 5,000 articles have been published on the effects of alcohol during pregnancy. One might assume we'd now have some consensus about the dangers of occasional light drinking during pregnancy. Unfortunately, this isn't so.
Maternal Smoking During Pregnancy Associated With Negative Toddler Behavior and Early Smoking Experimentation NIDA-funded researchers have added to the accumulating scientific evidence that women's smoking during pregnancy adversely affects their children's health and development. Two new studies have linked prenatal tobacco exposure to negative behavior in toddlers and smoking experimentation by pre-adolescents. In a study conducted by Dr. Judith Brook, Dr. David Brook, and Dr. Martin Whiteman of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, mothers who smoked during pregnancy indicated that their toddlers exhibited more negative behaviors - impulsiveness, risk-taking, and rebelliousness - than mothers who did not smoke during pregnancy reported among their children.
Mother Risk Motherisk counsels pregnant and breastfeeding women and their caregivers about the risks of substance use, and the risks of exposure to drugs, herbal remedies, infectious diseases, chemicals and radiation.
NEURODEVELOPMENTAL OUTCOME OF IN UTERO COCAINE EXPOSURE The objective of this competing renewal is to delineate the effects of in utero cocaine exposure on integrated neuropsychological, behavior/emotional and academic functioning during the preschool and school-aged-years in a 90% retained cohort of 476 African American children enrolled prospectively at birth. A burgeoning literature has proved inconsistent in characterizing specific impairments related to prenatal cocaine exposure. Our own studies of cocaine exposed infants in the first two years of life have identified only transient findings of questionable clinical significance. Converging research in neuropsychology, however, strongly suggests that prenatal and early childhood neurological insults may only become evident as the brain matures functionally. This position has been particularly well articulated for frontal lobe development, an area potentially influenced by cocaine exposure during neuronal differentiation. Accordingly, it is hypothesized that cocaine exposed children will exhibit functional neu
Pregnancy and Drug Use Trends Drug abuse can occur at any stage in a woman's life. Of women who use illicit drugs, however, about half are in the childbearing age group of 15 to 44. In 1992/1993, NIDA conducted a nationwide hospital survey to determine the extent of drug abuse among pregnant women in the United States. This National Pregnancy and Health Survey* still provides the most recent national data available.
Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System The Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) is a population-based surveillance system used by 23 states to monitor selected maternal attitudes, behaviors, and experiences. The purpose is to improve the health of mothers and infants by reducing adverse outcomes such as low birth weight, infant illness and death, and maternal illness. The 1997 findings from 13 states include—
Selection of Recent Print Resources on Women and Substance Use Selection of Recent Print Resources on Women and Substance Use Prepared by Nancy Poole, Research Consultant, Aurora Treatment Centre, BC Women's Hospital For the 18th Annual SALIS Conference (Substance Abuse Librarians and Information Specialists), Vancouver, B.C., November 1996
SISTERS SISTERS Intervention Services is a comprehensive paraprofessional case management program for substance abusing pregnant and postpartum women receiving detoxification treatment services. The mission of the program was to provide peer support and case management to ensure the coordination of drug treatment, prenatal, postpartum, pediatric, and family support services for pregnant and postpartum women. The SISTERS program was specifically designed to add much needed peer-oriented outreach and case management to the existing Maternal Substance Abuse Services Program, which alread
Smoking and Pregnancy Smoking during pregnancy is associated with low birth rate, high rates of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome), behavior problems, and learning difficulties.
Smoking By Pregnant Women Drops Overall in 1997, But Continues to Increase Among Teenagers he final data on U.S. births for 1997 was recently reported by the National Center for Health Statistics at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The new data showed that smoking during pregnancy continued to decline in 1997, with 13.2 percent of women giving birth reporting to have smoked. This figure was down 3 percent compared with 1996 data (13.6 percent women reporting smoking) and 32 percent since 1989 (19.5 percent women reporting smoking). Tobacco use was reported in a comparable manner on birth certificates in 1997 by 46 States, the District of Columbia, and New York City, which comprised 80 percent of U.S. births. Comparable information was not available for California, Indiana, South Dakota, and the remainder of New York State
Teen-Anon Help for Teens Who Drink or Drug And All Those Who Love Them
The Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Facts about FAS/FAE, information on parenting, treatment and educating children with FAS/FAE.
The National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome NOFAS is committed to raising public awareness of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (The leading known cause of mental retardation) ,and to developing and implementing innovative ideas in prevention, education, intervention, and advocacy in communities throughout the nation. (pregnancy)
Toddlers Whose Moms Smoked More Likely to Misbehave Women who smoke while pregnant are likely to end up with rebellious and impulsive toddlers, a new study shows. The findings, reported in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, add to the evidence linking smoking during pregnancy with behavioral problems in children that may continue to adulthood.
Treatment Methods for Women Addiction to drugs is a serious, chronic, and relapsing health problem for both women and men of all ages and backgrounds. Among women, however, drug abuse may present different challenges to health, may progress differently, and may require different treatment approaches.
VITAMINS HELP PLACENTA RESIST SMOKING DAM Antioxidant vitamins may help reduce the damage that smoking causes to the placenta. A study of more than 1,500 pregnant women confirmed previous findings on the effects of smoking on placental tissue. Specifically, smoking promotes calcification of the placenta, which may cause intrauterine growth retardation and fetal distress in labor. But researchers at the University of Tennessee and other centers also found that higher intakes of the antioxidant vitamins E, C, and beta-carotene could be linked to less calcification of placental tissue caused by smoking.
Wellness Guide Online Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs The regular use of alcohol or other drugs, even prescription drugs, can lead to addiction - you can't stop even if you want to. Addiction can ruin your life and the lives of those you love. If you have a problem, the first step toward healing is to admit that you need help. Talk to a counselor or doctor who knows about addiction. Drug treatment programs and support groups like Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) or Narcotics Anonymous (NA) can help you start living without alcohol or drugs.
What are the effects of alcohol and other drugs during pregnancy? Researchers don’t know a safe amount of alcohol or other drugs to use when you are pregnant. They do know that the more you consume, the higher the risk. The mother's metabolism and nutrition will also affect the fetus’ health. Most doctors and researchers say that it's a good idea to cut back if you are thinking of getting pregnant or if you already are pregnant. Better yet, they recommend that you cut out drinking and other drugs altogether during this time. If you do decide to continue, here’s some information to keep in mind. Alcohol
Why Drinking & Pregnancy Don't Mix The reason? Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). Doctors tell us that FAS is one of the leading causes of birth defects and developmental disabilities in the United States.
Fetal Alcohol and Drug Unit Fetal Alcohol Syndrome research unit, headed by Dr. Ann Streissguth, University of Washington. Website includes FAS resources, parent support groups worldwide, and the unit's findings.
