Drugs can even spoil the development of a baby, and can cause critical situations during pregnancy. Some of the drugs can cause nutritional deficiencies, fetal growth retardation and anemia. The use of drugs while pregnant can also increase the chance of developing toxemia or pre-eclampsia. Marijuana use during pregnancy can cause attention deficit, memory problems and impaired decision making skills. These problems usually don’t appear until age 3.
Pregnancy and Drug Use
The use of amphetamines is associated with an increase in cardiovascular defects in babies. Barbiturate use during pregnancy may be linked to birth defects, withdrawals, poor feeding, and seizures. Opiods are associated with abnormalities and complications during pregnancy. There is a high risk for premature labor, intrauterine growth retardation and pre-eclampsia, in women who use opiods while pregnant.
Cocaine use by the mother-to-be can increase the risk of miscarriage. Babies born to mothers who used cocaine during pregnancy can have lower IQ scores and mental deficiencies. Sudden infant death syndrome is more common in babies born to mothers who used cocaine. The use of PCP during pregnancy is believed to cause abnormal development in babies. It can cause the mother to have mental illness and loose contact with reality.
If you smoke cigarettes, and are pregnant or plan to be pregnant you should definitely consider stopping the habit. When you inhale tobacco smoke you are inhaling substances that a...
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