Missouri Department of Health & Senior Services

By the end of this session you will:

Learn the difference between

• Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)
• Fetal Alcohol Effect (FAE)
• Find out what happens to a fetus when a mom drinks.
• Learn the long-term effects on a baby and family with FAS or FAE.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) and Fetal Alcohol Effect (FAE) are the number one preventable forms of birth defects today.

It is totally preventable. Don't drink during pregnancy!

What is Fetal Alcohol Syndrome?

FAS physical defects include:

• small at birth
• shorter size
• underweight
• deformed fingers and toes
• develop slowly

Infants with FAS also tend to have a particular pattern of facial abnormalities such as:

• abnormally small head
• low nasal bridge
• abnormally small eyes
• flat midface
• short nose
• thin upper lip

FAS also includes, deformities in the major organ systems, especially the heart.

Mental defects:

• Low IQ's
• Permanent brain damage
• Learning problems
• Poor coordination
• Short attention spans

Emotional defects:

• Hyperactive
• Behavioral problems

These defects continue throughout the child's life.

What is Fetal Alcohol Effect?

• Children with Fetal Alcohol Effect may show no physical signs and may have normal or above normal intelligence.  They may have behavioral problems, attention deficit disorders and hyperactivity.  They often show poor judgment and have trouble with the law.  They tend to have problems with school, family and friends.

When Pregnant Women Drink so Does BABY!

• Alcohol is toxic (a poison) and it passes directly from mom to baby through the placenta.
• Alcohol can affect the way cells grow and join together as they multiply.
• The baby's brain is particularly sensitive to alcohol and alcohol can reduce the number of cells growing in the brain. The developing brain is often smaller and the neurons (nerves that send messages) are found in the wrong places.
• The first three months are the MOST CRITICAL to the development of the baby's internal organs. This is a time when many women don't even know they are pregnant!

 * 1. Kids with fetal alcohol syndrome have bad behavior all the time.
  True      False  

 * 2. There is a cure for fetal alcohol syndrome.
  True      False

 * 3. FAS (Fetal Alcohol Syndrome) means that a baby is born drunk.
  True      False

 * 4. FAS can cause behavior problems.
  True      False

 * 5. FAS can cause learning problems.
  True      False

 * 6. FAS is the leading cause of mental retardation.
  True      False

 * 7. There are always physical signs in a baby with Fetal Alcohol Effect (FAE).
  True      False

 * 8. The first three months of a women's pregnancy is the most critical time to the development of the baby's internal organs.
  True      False

1. The most brain damage from drinking occurs during which weeks of pregnancy?

2. Can the legs and arms be affected by alcohol consumption?

3. Does damage start before most people realize they are pregnant?
Yes      No

Why should I Worry?

Recent studies in the United States indicate between 1300 and 8000 children are born with FAS. That's about 1 in every 500 births. Many more are born with FAE, about 1 in every 300 births.

"The consequences of prenatal abuse are likely under reported. Hospitals report some 2,700 cases annually of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. But because signs of this disease-physical deformities, stunted growth, behavioral abnormalities and mental retardation-are often not apparent at birth, many experts place the number of FAS babies at 12,000 a year." (National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse.)

• Recent CDC findings indicate that 1 in 8 women between 18 and 44 years of age report "risk drinking". Risk drinking means having 7 or more drinks per week, or 5 or more drinks at one time.
• One out of every 29 women who know they are pregnant report risk drinking.

12 oz. beer

4 oz. wine

1 ounce liquor

Which Alcoholic Beverage has the Least Amount of Alcohol?

  beer
  wine or wine coolers
  "hard alcohol
  all of the above
  none of the above

What happens when baby comes home?

• Babies with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome are often irritable. They are very sensitive to light, noise and touch. They have a difficult time feeding because of weak sucking and fatigue.  They have problems with sleep, they're fussy and not easily soothed. They are jittery, nervous and cry excessively. There are often on-going medical problems.
• As you can see, any one of these problems would put a strain on anyone. FAS babies often have more than one problem.  These problems don't go away. As the infant gets older they may become upset easier, hyperactive and easily distracted. The child may show developmental delays and have problems using muscles. This is only the beginning of a long and bumpy road for a fetal alcohol child. They often have difficulties getting along with others.  Poor problem solving skills, judgment, impulse control and immature behavior cause problems with the law.

1. Name three problems seen in a baby with fetal alcohol syndrome.

If you have further questions or want more information see links below.

* Which LWP WIC Office do you go to?  
Select one Adair Andrew Atchison Audrain Barry Barton Bates Benton Bollinger Butler Caldwell Callaway Camden Cape Girardeau Carroll Carter Cass Cedar Chariton Christian Clark Clay Clinton Cole Columbia/Boone Health Department Cooper Crawford Crescent Clinic Dade Dallas Daviess Dent Douglas Dunklin Family Care Health Centers Franklin Gasconade-Osage Grace Hill Nieghborhood Health Centers, Inc. Grundy Harrison Henry Hickory Holt Howard Howell Iron Jefferson-Franklin Community Action Corp Johnson Joplin City Health Department Kansas City Health Department Knox Laclede Lawrence Lewis Lincoln Linn Livingston Macon Madison Marion McDonald Mercer Miller Mississippi Moniteau Monroe Montgomery Morgan New Madrid Newton Nodaway Northeast Community Action Corp (NECAC) Oregon Ozark Pemiscot People's Health Centers, Inc. Perry Pettis Phelps Pike Platte Polk Pulaski Putnam Ralls Randolph Ray Reynolds Ripley Saline Samuel U. Rodgers Health Center, Inc. Schuyler Scotland Scott Shannon Shelby Springfield-Greene St. Charles St. Clair St. Francois StJoseph/Buchanan St. Louis County St. Louis Human Development Corp. St. Luke's Hospital WIC Clinic Ste. Genevieve Stoddard Stone Sullivan Swope Health Services Taney Texas Tri-County Truman Medical Center Vernon Washington Wayne Webster Wright Other

 * Where are you taking today's lesson?
  At home
  Library
  WIC Office
  Other  

You have completed the pregnancy Class on “Alcohol and Your Baby”. If you have any questions or comments, please contact your LWP nutritionist who will be glad to answer any of your questions.