Pregnancy & Prenatal Care
When you smoke, drink, or take drugs, your baby does, too! Smoking, drinking, and/or taking drugs can increase your risk for problems. Your baby is at more risk for problems, too.
Smoking
Pregnant women who smoke have more chances for these problems:
* Vaginal bleeding
* Ectopic pregnancy
* Miscarriage or stillbirth
* Preterm birth
Babies born to pregnant women who smoke have more chances for these problems:
* Low birth weight
* Crib death
* Less able to fight infections, like colds, after being born
* Some may learn more slowly when they go to school
Drinking Alcohol
Pregnant women who drink alcohol have more chances for these problems:
* Miscarriage
* Stillbirth
Babies born to pregnant women who drink alcohol have more chances for these problems:
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) – when the mother drinks a lot. With FAS, the baby is apt to have one or more of these things:
* Low birth weight
* Mental problems (the baby could be retarded)
* Behavior problems
* Learning problems
* Health problems
* Body defects
{Note: No one knows a safe level of alcohol for pregnant women. It is best not to drink at all.}
Taking Drugs
From cocaine (also called “crack”):
* Early miscarriage
* High blood pressure
* Heavy bleeding late in pregnancy
* Sudden death, heart attack, or stroke
* If the mother shares needles with other drug users, she also is at more risk for Hepatitis B and HIV/AIDS.
From heroin and other narcotics:
* Preterm birth
* Stillbirth
* If the mother shares needles with other drug users, she is at more risk for Hepatitis B and HIV/AIDS as well.
From Marijuana – (also called “pot” or “grass”):
* Changes in mood and sense of reality
* Preterm birth
From cocaine (also called “crack”):
* Low birth weight
* Slow growth
* Tend to have smaller than normal heads and brains
* May have brain injury
* Crib death
* Body defects
* Learning problems
* Behavior problems
From heroin and other narcotics:
* Low birth weight
* Slow growth
* Addicted to the drug when born
* Trouble thinking and learning
* Behavior problems
From Marijuana – (also called “pot” or “grass”):
* Low birth weight
* May have behavior problems
© American Institute for Preventive Medicine