A syndrome is a group of symptoms that happen together as the result of a particular disease or abnormal condition. When someone has fetal alcohol syndrome, they’re at the most severe end of what are known as fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). Not all infants exposed to alcohol in utero https://ecosoberhouse.com/success-story/justins-success-story/ will have detectable FASD or pregnancy complications. The risk of FASD increases with amount consumed, the frequency of consumption, and the longer duration of alcohol consumption during pregnancy, particularly binge drinking. The variance seen in outcomes of alcohol consumption during pregnancy is poorly understood.
- This is because a woman could get pregnant and not know for up to four to six weeks.
- Alcohol exposure in utero increases the risk of spontaneous abortion, decreases birth weight, and can cause fetal alcohol syndrome, a constellation of variable physical and cognitive abnormalities.
- Not only can this prevent fetal alcohol syndrome disorders in future children, but it can also provide parenting skills to help their child with fetal alcohol syndrome.
- Behavioral symptoms can be treated with medicine and therapy.
- Quit drinking if you are trying to get pregnant or if you think you’re pregnant.
More on Health & Pregnancy
Alcohol use during pregnancy can interfere with the baby’s development, causing physical and mental defects. Fetal alcohol syndrome is the most severe condition within a group of conditions called fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). FASDs can occur when a person is exposed to alcohol before birth. Alcohol in the mother’s blood passes to the baby through the umbilical cord.
What Is Fetal Alcohol Syndrome?
- This is sometimes called a “Child Find” evaluation You do not need to wait for a doctor’s referral or a medical diagnosis to make this call.
- However, early treatment of some symptoms can lessen the severity and improve your child’s development.
- At the same time as you ask the doctor for a referral to a specialist, call your state or territory’s early intervention program to request a free evaluation to find out if your child can get services to help.
- Siblings of an infant diagnosed with FAS should be examined for subtle manifestations of the disorder.
Counseling can help women who have already had a child with FAS. Drinking alcohol is likely most harmful during the first 3 months of pregnancy. But drinking alcohol any time during pregnancy can be harmful.
Areas evaluated for FASD diagnoses
An individual with FAS may have noticeable changes to their face and limbs, as well as delays in the way their body develops over time. There can also be mental and emotional challenges throughout the person’s life that can impact their social life, education and work. Fetal alcohol syndrome happens when a person drinks any alcohol during pregnancy, including wine, beer, hard ciders and “hard liquor”. One reason alcohol is dangerous during pregnancy is that it’s passed through your bloodstream to the fetus through the umbilical cord. The baby doesn’t metabolize (break down) alcohol in the same way an adult does – it stays in the body for a longer period of time.
Over time, a number of secondary effects can happen in people with FAS, particularly in those who aren’t treated for the condition in childhood. These fetal alcohol syndrome are called secondary effects because they’re not part of FAS itself. Instead, these secondary effects happen as a result of having FAS. One person might have only a few, while another person could experience all of them.
Risks of Drinking While Pregnant
Developmental disorders (or alcoholism treatment developmental disabilities) are a group of conditions and impairments in physical, learning, language or behavior that affect daily life. These disorders are primarily diagnosed in children, but present before the age of 22. FASDs can occur when a developing baby is exposed to alcohol before birth. This can happen even prior to a person recognizing that they are pregnant. Even small amounts of alcohol will pass across the placenta and to the fetus.
- Your doctor may look for physical symptoms, such as a low birth weight and a small head.
- To diagnose fetal alcohol syndrome, doctors look for unusual facial features, lower-than-average height and weight, small head size, problems with attention and hyperactivity, and poor coordination.
- Because of this, drinking alcohol can harm the unborn baby.
Alcohol consumption could harm the developing fetus at any time during pregnancy — especially early on in the development process. Children born with this syndrome experience the symptoms throughout their entire lives. Some symptoms can be managed with treatment by a healthcare provider, but they won’t go away. If you did drink any amount of alcohol during pregnancy, it’s important to know that your healthcare provider and your baby’s pediatrician need to know to help you plan for your child’s future. Women who are pregnant or who are trying to get pregnant should not drink any amount of alcohol.
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
You do not need to wait for a healthcare provider’s referral or a medical diagnosis to make this call. After delivery, you should continue to pay attention to when you drink alcohol if you’re breastfeeding your baby. If you’ve already consumed alcohol during pregnancy, it’s never too late to stop. Brain growth in the fetus takes place throughout pregnancy, so stopping alcohol consumption as soon as possible is always best.
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Prevention
Diagnosis is based on an assessment of growth, facial features, central nervous system, and alcohol exposure by a multi-disciplinary team of professionals. The main criteria for diagnosis of FASD is nervous system damage and alcohol exposure, with FAS including congenital malformations of the lips and growth deficiency. Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is the most severe form of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, a range of conditions caused by exposure to alcohol in the womb. FAS symptoms include distinctive facial features, lower-than-average height and weight, and problems with brain and nervous system development. There is no single test for fetal alcohol syndrome (a lifelong condition), but early detection and treatment can greatly improve the lives of children with FAS.