Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders

Also called: FASD

Alcohol can harm your baby at any stage during a pregnancy. That includes the earliest stages before you even know you are pregnant. Drinking alcohol can cause a group of conditions called fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). Effects can include physical and behavioral problems such as trouble with

• Learning and remembering
• Understanding and following directions
• Controlling emotions
• Communicating and socializing
• Daily life skills, such as feeding and bathing

Fetal alcohol syndrome is the most serious type of FASD. People with fetal alcohol syndrome have facial abnormalities, including wide-set and narrow eyes, growth problems and nervous system abnormalities.

FASDs last a lifetime. There is no cure for FASDs. Treatments can help. These include medicines to help with some symptoms and behavior therapy. No one treatment is right for every child.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

• Fetal alcohol syndrome (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Preventing FASD: Healthy Women, Healthy Babies (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) – PDF

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