According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), cases of fetal alcohol syndrome are up six-fold since the mid-1980s. Furthermore, about 50,000 babies each year have disabilities stemming from maternal use of alcohol during pregnancy.

Children born with FAS suffer stunted growth and facial deformities, attention and behavior problems, and, in some cases, mental retardation. Fetal alcohol syndrome is the leading known cause of mental retardation.

Experts point out that children never outgrow FAS. As a result, each afflicted child will cost $1.4 million over his or her lifetime in institutional and medical costs.

Louise Floyd, acting chief for the CDC's Fetal Alcohol Branch, said waning education about FAS and increased publicity about the health advantages of certain types of alcohol has resulted in women viewing alcohol as more benign than other drugs.

"They think, 'If I'm not using heroin or cocaine like the people down the street, if I'm just using beer, that's OK,'" Mitchell says.

COMMENTS ON THIS ARTICLE:

Posted by Shawna Katschke on 17 Apr 08 12:27 PM EDT

Thank you for printing this. I am raising a child with FAS caused by his biological mother. He has so many medical needs and the cost is out of this world. Getting this informatin out there is very important.

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