Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is a condition that results from prenatal alcohol exposure. If you drink during pregnancy, you place your baby at risk of fetal alcohol syndrome.
The defects that are part of fetal alcohol syndrome are irreversible and can include serious physical, mental and behavioral problems, though they vary from one child to another. As many as 40,000 babies are born with some type of alcohol-related damage each year in the United States. www.mayoclinic.com/health/fetal-alcohol-syndrome/DS00184
Signs of fetal alcohol syndrome may include:
- Distinctive facial features, including small eyes, an exceptionally thin upper lip, a short, upturned nose and a smooth skin surface between the nose and upper lip
- Heart defects
- Deformities of joints, limbs and fingers
- Slow physical growth before and after birth
- Vision difficulties or hearing problems
- Small head circumference and brain size (microcephaly)
- Poor coordination
- Sleep problems
- Mental retardation and delayed development
- Learning disorders
- Abnormal behavior, such as a short attention span, hyperactivity, poor impulse control, extreme nervousness and anxiety.
The facial features seen with fetal alcohol syndrome may also occur in normal, healthy children. Distinguishing normal facial features from those of fetal alcohol syndrome requires expertise.
Facts about FAS www.nofas.org/taqs.aspx?id=12
- FASD is the leading known preventable cause of mental retardation and birth defects, and a leading known cause of learning disabilities.
- FASD affects 1 in 100 infants each year, more than autism, and downs syndrome, cerebral palsy, cystic fibrosis, spina bifida and sudden infant death syndrome combined.
- The effects of prenatal exposure to alcohol last a lifetime. There is no safe level of drinking during pregnancy. (Drinking Alcohol During Pregnancy, March of Dimes 2003)
- There is NO cure, but FASD’s are 100% preventable (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2003)
www.FetalAlcoholSyndrome.org compares each child that is “disabled by prenatal alcohol exposure,” to an “innocent snowflake. There is nothing more fragile and beautiful than innocence; but nothing is more tragic than innocence betrayed by ignorance and fear.”
Let your doctor know if you drank alcohol while pregnant or if you are currently pregnant and can’t stop drinking, ask your obstetrician or doctor for help. Please Don’t Wait and Don't Steal Their Innocence. Early diagnosis may help reduce the risk of long term problems for children with FAS. Children are precious gifts and deserve every chance in life that we can offer them.
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