Drug abuse is a major social and medical problem in the United States. According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, or NIDA, 9 million women in the United States are substance abusers. Three million women use prescription drugs illicitly. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecology, or ACOG, reports that 1 in 10 babies are born to mothers who abused drugs during pregnancy. Substance abuse can have devastating effects on both the mother and her unborn child.
Smoking
If a woman smokes during pregnancy, she exposes her baby to the 4,000 chemicals in cigarettes, including tar, nicotine and cancer-causing agents. Women who smoke endanger their unborn child. Nicotine constricts blood vessels, which decreases the amount of oxygen and nutrients that the baby receives in utero. Smoking increases the level of carbon monoxide in the mother’s system, which displaces oxygen, so there is less oxygen available for the baby. Because of these effects, mothers who smoke are more likely to have an ectopic pregnancy, vaginal bleeding, problems with the way the placenta attaches to the uterus, stillborn birth and/or a low birth-weight baby.
Alcohol
Drinking alcohol while pregnant exposes the unborn fetus to alcohol. The baby’s blood alcohol level is the same as the mother’s when she drinks; it is unknown how much alcohol is toxic to an unborn child. The ACOG recommends that pregnant women abstain from drinking. Heavy drinking can cause fetal alcohol syndrome, involves mental retardation, inadequate growth before and after birth, facial defects, heart defects and behavioral problems in infants. Mothers who drink during pregnancy can also have children who develop antisocial behavior and attention deficit disorder.
Ilegal Drugs
Using illegal drugs during pregnancy can cause fetal malformations and miscarriages; using drugs near term can cause preterm labor and/or fetal death. Methamphetamine use raises the blood pressure of the mother and puts her and her baby at risk for stroke; she also risks brain damage, premature birth and miscarriage. Cocaine is highly addictive to both mother and baby; babies born to mothers who abused cocaine during pregnancy are highly irritable, difficult to console and can suffer withdrawal symptoms. Heroin babies are born addicted to heroin and may be very low-birth-weight babies and suffer behavioral problems as well as withdrawal symptoms.
