Impact of Maternal Cocaine Abuse

Bada and associates (2002) report that in America, approximately one million women of child-bearing age use cocaine; and of these between 15 to 20 percent are women living in the inner city. The authors feel that these statistics mean it is a virtual certainty that many obstetricians will encounter women whose fetuses and children are affected by this drug. Thus, understanding the impact of fetal exposure to cocaine is of paramount importance to health professionals such as doctors and nurses. The purpose of this paper is to discuss how maternal cocaine abuse as an environmental hazard impacts the fetus and child. To this end, the paper provides a description of the pathophysiology associated with fetal exposure to maternal cocaine use and discusses the various health and developmental consequences. The final section of the paper discusses health promotion strategies nurses can use to reduce infants' risk of maternal cocaine use.

Bada and associates (2002) report that in America, approximately one million women of child-bearing age use cocaine; and of these between 15 to 20 percent are women living in the inner city. The authors feel that these statistics mean it is a virtual certainty that many obstetricians will encounter women whose fetuses and children are affected by this drug. Thus, understanding the impact of fetal exposure to cocaine is of paramount importance

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a positive impact on the child's development. Impact on Children and Adolescents Before discussing the developmental and other problems children face, there is one factor that must be mentioned. Concerning this factor, it is important to note that while it is mentioned in terms of having an impact on children and adolescents, it can also operate to affect very young children including infants and toddlers. This is the factor of psychoemotional stress experienced by the mother. In this regard, Das Eiden, Peterson and Coleman (1999) point out that all children are affected by the caregiving environment in which they are raised. In their study of women who abused cocaine during pregnancy, they found that after birth, the caregiving environment provided by these mothers was deleterious because of the general high stress levels of mothers and their poor psychosocial functioning, child rearing customs and attitudes. Findings of Das Eiden et. al's (1999) study indicated that these mothers tended to handle their stress, especially the stress associated with what they perceived to be disruptive behavior on the part of the child, with poor and inadequate discipline such as frequently slapping or spanking the child, frequently yelling
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 3308
Approximate Pages = 13 (250 words per page)

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