Fetal alcohol syndrome

What is fetal alcohol syndrome and fetal alcohol spectrum disorder?

Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is a pattern of mental and physical defects that can develop in a fetus in association with high levels of alcohol consumption during pregnancy. Current research also implicates other lifestyle choices made by the prospective mother.
  The current recommendation of both the Surgeon General of the United States and the British Department of Health is to drink no alcohol at all during pregnancy.

Alcohol crosses the placental barrier and can stunt fetal growth or weight, create distinctive facial stigmata, damage neurons and brain structures, which can result in psychological or behavioral problems, and cause other physical damage. Surveys found that in the United States, 10–15% of pregnant women report having recently drunk alcohol, and up to 30% drink alcohol at some point during pregnancy.

The main effect of FAS is permanent!!!! Central nervous system damage, especially to the brain. Developing brain cells and structures can be malformed or have development interrupted by prenatal alcohol exposure; this can create an array of primary cognitive and functional disabilities (including poor memory, attention deficits, impulsive behavior, and poor cause-effect reasoning) as well as secondary disabilities (for example, predispositions to mental health problems and drug addiction). Alcohol exposure presents a risk of fetal brain damage at any point during a pregnancy, since brain development is ongoing throughout pregnancy.

Fetal alcohol exposure is the leading known cause of mental retardation in the Western world. In the United States and Europe, the FAS prevalence rate is estimated to be between 0.2-1.5 in every 1000 live births.

FAS should not be confused with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD), a condition which describes a continuum of permanent birth defects caused by maternal consumption of alcohol during pregnancy, which includes FAS, as well as other disorders, and which affects about 1% of live births in the US.The lifetime medical and social costs of FAS are estimated to be as high as US$800,000 per child born with the disorder.
resource:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fetal_alcohol_syndrome

Signs of fetal alcohol syndrome may include:

Deformities of joints, limbs and fingers

Poor coordination

Mental retardation and delayed development

Abnormal behavior, such as a short attention span, hyperactivity, poor impulse control, extreme nervousness and anxiety

Slow physical growth before and after birth

 Heart defects

Learning disorders

Small head circumference and brain size

Vision difficulties or hearing problems

Distinctive facial features:

my little one he is looking up so it is hard to see how small his eye opening ate. He also has the thin smooth area between his nose and upper lip which is thin.

• My sons have all the physical signs of FAS and because we know the birth is an alcoholic and drug addict thankfully she was honest about these things. It was much easier to get them all diagnosed.
  
  This is one of the main pictures on the Internet showing the characteristics of FAS. This is NOT one of my children.
  
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  For more pictures of facial and other FAS features you can check out this website they have several. https://www.google.com/search?q=fetal+alcohol+syndrome+effects&hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=9Q6&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&prmd=imvns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=8oVsT4SsAcju0gGeutDEBg&ved=0CGwQsAQ&biw=1440&bih=781

I do not claim to be an expert on FAS I adopted the boys with FAS almost three years ago they were with us for two years before that. My experiences are my own and I don't have any great cures because they aren't any. I do however have faith and hope that my boys will be able to lead a somewhat "normal" life. It might not be what some consider normal but with God's help we are committed to helping them reach as far as they can go..

For more information on FAS/FASD :http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/fetal-alcohol-syndrome/DS00184

http://kidshealth.org/parent/medical/brain/fas.html

My other blogs on FAS and special needs children http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6039288263989604975#editor/target=post;postID=4931608200419700633
http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6039288263989604975#editor/target=post;postID=7409022508128041194
http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6039288263989604975#editor/target=post;postID=4823017805242446273