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- Human Lifespan Development
- Early exposure to alcohol is among the major causes of defects in births and effects such as mental retardation. Among other disorders caused by this exposure, include neurodevelopmental disorders. Over the years, many birth defects that result from alcohol exposure are defined as clinical entity known as fetal alcohol syndrome. Recently, the exposure of alcohol in the uterus is related to other problems of neurodevelopmental problems (Streissguth, 2007). A fetal alcohol effect is a term used to describe abnormalities in animals, though clinicians use it to describe children with various problems, which include growth deficiency, and delays in speech performance.
- Children ailing from fetal alcohol syndrome may show behavioral problems as well as psychosocial problems, which may crop up lifelong disabilities. The abnormal behavior manifests itself in many ways such as mathematical deficiency among other problems like differentiating one thing from another. Those affected show poor attention and memory deficits and other problems like difficulty in comprehension. They also encounter behavioral issues like hyperactivity and conduct problems, which are lying, and stubbornness among others.
- None of the affected people has achieved the appropriate level of socialization or the proper communication skills. They have failure in considering the results of their actions and do not reciprocate friendships (Streissguth 2007). There are high rates of persons affected by fetal alcohol syndrome reported among some communities in America.
- Among the Aboriginal community, the fetal alcohol syndrome has a prevalence of almost 1.5% in the population. Here, alcohol prohibition and education programs in health are provided to pregnant women to reduce the consumption of alcohol (Thomas, 2008). According to research, prevalence in heart disease is 1.2% among the adults of the Aboriginal and the Torres Strait Islander communities. Consuming alcohol at high levels results to liver disease and brain damage. It contributes to road accidents and self-harm. Surveys show that these communities consume alcohol in high levels, which are harmful to them. The groups at a greater risk are the males in the mid-twenties and the mid-fifties, and females between 18 and 40 years. The other age groups show a slight difference from the ones in the rest of the population.
- Research shows that 29 % of the Aboriginal adults and the Torres Strait Islander drinkers risk their health with much alcohol consumption. Here, most mothers are prone to smoking during their pregnancy and they are likely to die when delivering. Many fetuses are exposed to alcohol in the early stages of pregnancy, since the drinking rates increase in the women in these two communities (Thomas, 2008). Up to 80% drink in the three months before they get pregnant. Fourteen percent of them are reported to drink during the pregnancy. Most the children here are out of their homes and many have affected siblings, which show missed opportunities to help the prevention of drinking.
- Moreover, studies show that due to the high increase in alcohol consumption among these pregnant women, fetal alcohol syndrome is undiagnosed and the health professionals do not exactly know what advice to give the affected pregnant women. Aboriginal and the Torres Strait Islander infants are in most cases three times likely to die just before their first birthday.
- Understanding child development is important since it allows us to comprehend the behavior, and emotional growth that all children pass through from their time of birth and early adulthood. Some of the key theories of the development in children are known as major theories since they describe all aspects on the development of a child. Others are mini-theories and only focus on limited aspects in development like the cognitive growth. Human development studies the emotional changes and changes in perceptions that human beings encounter in their life. Developmental psychology focuses on issues like the extent that development takes place in the accumulation of knowledge, how children are born with mental structures, and learn though experience (Newman, 2007).
- Sigmund Freud proposed theories, which focused on the importance of the events in childhood, and experiences, though exclusively stressed the mental disorders. Freud stated that child development revolves around a series of the psychosexual stages. He outlined the stages, which included the oral, and the anal. Others were the latency as well as the genital. In every stage, there is the satisfaction of the libido desire that later plays a role in the adult personality.
- According to him, if a child does not complete a stage as required, he or she will develop a fixation that influences the personality of the adult and his/her behavior. Eric Erikson’s theory proposed a theory that focused on development on the whole life of the human lifespan. He believed that every stage aimed at overcoming conflicts. In the adolescent stage, failure of the development in identity may result in confusion.
- The effects of fetal alcohol syndrome on the developing child are adverse. This is manifested in growth deficiency as the child is below average in both height and the weight. This is also noted during their lifespan. Several characteristics are visible in children as their facial features show their brain damage. Facial deformities are formed during the 10th to the 20th week of pregnancy (Wolraich, 2009). Exposure to alcohol results to various facial deformities such as a thin vermilion, whereby the upper lip becomes thin, the width of the eye decreases, and the groove between the nose and the lip becomes flat. The infants affected are born with low birth weight and dysfunctional organs. They delay in development both in emotional and cognitive. They have poor skills of socializing which make it difficult for them to relate to groups.
- Children affected by Fetal Alcohol Syndrome have problems that relate to language as well as memory. They tend to have a high rate of forgetting verbal information than the normal children who are not affected by this syndrome. These affected children are not able to maintain attention or focus on things over time. They shift attention from different things to others. They perform poorly on issues that involve relationships of objects, for example classroom objects.
- Pregnant women are recommended to abstain from consuming alcohol, as there is no amount that is safe during pregnancy. Major efforts in the society should be made to create quality programs to educate of the hazardous effects on alcohol to the unborn child. The health care providers who cater for the pregnant women should create awareness on conditions such as the fetal alcohol syndrome and its dangers (Streissguth, 2007). A professional who is competent as well as knowledgeable in the evaluation of the condition should treat infants suspected to be victims on the disease. Moreover, parents of the children should be provided with the proper support services for their children, including guidance to prevent the same problems from occurring again. Besides, campaigns should be encouraged to educate dangers of fetal alcohol syndrome, as well as to reduce the consumption of alcohol by pregnant women.
- References
- Newman, B. Newman, P. (2007). Theories of Human Development. New York: Routledge.
- Streissguth, A. (2007). Fetal Alcohol Syndrome: A Guide for Families and Communities. New York: Paul H. Brookes Publishers.
- Thomas, M. (2008). Human Development Theories: Windows on Culture. New York: SAGE.
- Wolraich, M. (2009). Disorders of development and learning. New York: PMPH-USA.
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