Child Psychology Ch.03 Pt.3

Teratogens do more damage when they occur at some points in development than at others

Damage during the germinal period may even prevent implantation.

Maternal age is also linked to the risk that a child will have

Down syndrome.

Psychoactive drugs are drugs that act on the nervous system to alter states of consciousness, modify perceptions, and change moods:

Examples include caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine, as well as illicit drugs such as cocaine, methamphetamine, marijuana, and heroin.

Syphilis (a sexually transmitted infection) is more damaging later in prenatal development—four months or more after conception:

Rather than affecting organogenesis, as rubella does, syphilis damages organs after they have formed.

Heavy drinking by pregnant women can have devastating consequences for their offspring:

The abnormalities include facial deformities and defects of the limbs, face, and heart

It is well documented that infants whose mothers are addicted to heroin show several behavioral difficulties at birth:

These difficulties include withdrawal symptoms such as tremors, irritability, abnormal crying, disturbed sleep, and impaired motor control.

If the mother took thalidomide on day 26 (probably before she knew she was pregnant),

an arm might not grow.

Incompatibility between the mother's and father's blood types poses

another risk to prenatal development.

Prescription drugs that can function as teratogens include

antibiotics, such as streptomycin and tetracycline; some antidepressants; certain hormones such as progestin and synthetic estrogen; and isotretinoin (often prescribed for acne).

A teratogen is

any agent that can potentially cause a physical birth defect. (The word comes from the Greek word tera, meaning "monster.")

Preterm births and low birth weights, fetal and neonatal deaths, and respiratory problems and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS, also known as crib death)

are more common among the offspring of mothers who smoked during pregnancy

For unknown reasons, male fetuses are far more likely to

be affected by teratogens than are female fetuses.

Most children with FASD are characterized by neurocognitive difficulties and learning problems, and many are

below average in intelligence or have an intellectual disability

The time of exposure, dose, and genetic susceptibility to a particular teratogen influence

both the type of defect and the severity of the damage to an embryo or fetus: Dose. The dose effect is rather obvious—the greater the dose of an agent, such as a drug, the greater the effect.

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) are characterized by a number of physical abnormalities and learning problems. Notice the wide-set eyes, flat cheekbones, and thin upper lip in this child with FASD.

characterized by a number of physical abnormalities and learning problems. (Notice the wide-set eyes, flat cheekbones, and thin upper lip in this child with FASD).

Nonetheless, some research suggests that it may not be wise to

consume alcohol at the time of conception. Doing so can lead to increased risk for problems during fertilization and implantation that cause miscarriage

AIDS is a sexually transmitted infection that is caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which

destroys the body's immune system.

One research study revealed that children born to fathers who were 40 years of age or older had increased risk of

developing autism because of an increase in random gene mutations in the older father; However, the age of the offspring's mother was not linked to development of autism in children.

This is especially true for the

developing fetal brain, which continues to develop connections throughout pregnancy.

The mortality rate of infants born to adolescent mothers is

double that of infants born to mothers in their twenties.

Teratogens include

drugs, incompatible blood types, environmental pollutants, infectious diseases, nutritional deficiencies, maternal stress, advanced maternal and paternal age, and environmental pollutants.

The probability of a structural defect is greatest

early in the embryonic period, when organs are being formed.

Prescription as well as nonprescription drugs, however, may have

effects on the embryo or fetus that the women never imagined.

Maternal obesity adversely affects pregnancy outcomes through

elevated rates of hypertension, diabetes, respiratory complications, and infections in the mother.

A highly influential research review established that pregnant women with high levels of stress are at increased risk for having a child with

emotional or cognitive problems, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and language delay (

In fact, thousands of babies are born each year with physical deformities or intellectual disabilities as a result of

events that occurred in the mother's life as early as one or two months before conception.

Each body structure has its own critical period of formation. Recall that a critical period is a

fixed time period very early in development during which certain experiences or events can have a long-lasting effect on development. The critical period for the nervous system (week 3) is earlier than that for arms and legs (weeks 4 and 5).

So many teratogens exist that practically every fetus is exposed to at least some of them

for this reason, it is difficult to determine which teratogen causes which problem. In addition, it may take a long time for the effects of a teratogen to show up. Only about half of all potential effects appear at birth.

The danger of structural defects caused by teratogens is

greatest early in embryonic development.

Optimists are more likely to believe that they

have control over the outcomes of their pregnancies.

Babies born to mothers who use methamphetamine, or "meth," during pregnancy are at risk for a number of problems, including

high infant mortality, low birth weight, and developmental and behavioral problems.

The more widespread disease of diabetes, characterized by

high levels of sugar in the blood, also affects offspring

Some exposures to teratogens do not cause physical birth defects but can alter the developing brain and influence cognitive and behavioral functioning,

in which case the field of study is called behavioral teratology.

And still other research indicates that simultaneous exposure to environmental tobacco smoke and alcohol during pregnancy can

increase the offspring's risk of having ADHD

Maternal exposure to environmental tobacco smoke, or secondhand smoke, has been linked to an

increased risk of low birth weight and smaller head size in offspring.

In a comprehensive review of teratogens that should never be taken during the first trimester of pregnancy,

isotreninoin was on the prohibited list ad Nonprescription drugs that can be harmful include diet pills and high doses of aspirin.

The type or severity of abnormalities caused by a teratogen is

linked to the genotype of the pregnant woman and the genotype of the embryo or fetus.

lack of folic acid during prenatal development is

linked with neural tube defects such as spina bifida in offspring.

35 years and older, risks also increase for

low birth weight, for preterm delivery, and for fetal death

The results vary, prenatal cocaine exposure has been linked to

lower arousal, less effective self-regulation, higher excitability, and poorer reflexes in neonates; impaired motor development; slower growth rate throughout childhood; higher blood pressure; impaired language development and information processing; attention deficits and impulsivity; learning disabilities; increased likelihood of needing special education supports in school; and increased rates of aggression and other conduct behavioral problems.

lead can affect children's mental and behavioral development

mental and behavioral development.

The most common treatment for heroin addiction,

methadone, is associated with very severe withdrawal symptoms in newborns as well as birth complications; these effects may be less severe for other heroin replacement drug therapies.

In general, the embryonic period is

more vulnerable than the fetal period.

If the fetus' blood is Rh-positive and the mother's is Rh-negative, the

mother's immune system may produce antibodies that will attack the fetus. Such an assault can result in any number of problems, including miscarriage or stillbirth, anemia, jaundice, heart defects, brain damage, or death soon after birth.

Maternal stress and depression have

negative developmental outcomes for offspring

If an active case of genital herpes is detected in a pregnant woman close to her delivery date, a cesarean section can be

performed (delivery of the infant through an incision in the mother's abdomen) to keep the

Differences in placental membranes and

placental transport also affect exposure.

The damage that drugs can do was tragically highlighted in 1961, when many pregnant women took a

popular sedative, thalidomide, to alleviate their morning sickness.

Marijuana use by pregnant women is related to deficits in memory and information processing in their offspring.

prenatal marijuana exposure was related to learning and memory difficulties at age 11.

Some specific hazards to the embryo or fetus that are worth a closer look include

radiation, toxic wastes, and other chemical pollutants in neighborhoods and in workplace environments

Blood types are created by differences in the surface structure of

red blood cells.

Cocaine quickly crosses the placenta to reach the fetus. The most consistent finding is that cocaine exposure during prenatal development is associated with

reduced birth weight, length, and head circumference.

Maternal smoking during pregnancy has been identified as a

risk factor for the development of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in offspring

The period of organogenesis (red color) lasts for about

six weeks.

Prenatal meth exposure was associated with

smaller head circumference, lower birth weight, and premature birth. And another study discovered that prenatal methamphetamine exposure was associated with risk for developing ADHD in 5-year-old children

Cocaine users are more likely than nonusers to

smoke cigarettes, use marijuana, drink alcohol, and take amphetamines.

Methamphetamine, like cocaine,

speeds up an individual's nervous system.

Later effects of teratogens (blue color) mainly occur in the fetal period and instead of causing structural defects are more likely to

stunt growth or cause problems with organ function.

Instead, exposure during the fetal period is more likely to

stunt growth or to create problems in the way organs function.

Penicillin is the only known treatment for

syphilis during pregnancy.

After organogenesis is complete

teratogens can no longer cause anatomical defects

If she took the drug two days later

the arm might not grow past the elbow.

If a pregnant woman is Rh-negative and her partner is Rh-positive,

the fetus may be Rh-positive.

The nutritional status of the embryo or fetus is determined by

the mother's total caloric intake and by her intake of proteins, vitamins, and minerals

newborns of fathers who smoked around their wives during the pregnancy were 4 ounces lighter at birth for each pack of cigarettes smoked per day than were

the newborns whose fathers had not smoked while their wives were pregnant

If a surface marker, called the Rh factor, is present in an individual's red blood cells

the person is said to be Rh-positive; if the Rh marker is not present, the person is said to be Rh-negative.

In adults, the effects of thalidomide are typically not damaging; in embryos, however

they are devastating. Not all infants were affected in the same way.

The greatest damage occurs if a mother contracts rubella in the

third or fourth week of pregnancy, although infection during the second month is also damaging

The extent to which an embryo or a fetus is

vulnerable to a teratogen may also depend on its genotype.

Marijuana use during pregnancy was linked to offspring's' low birth

weight and greater likelihood of being placed in a neonatal intensive care.

For example, how a mother metabolizes a particular drug can influence the degree to

which the drug effects are transmitted to the embryo or fetus.

One type of difference in the surface of red blood cells creates the familiar blood groups

—A, B, O, and AB.