Side Effects of intake of Drugs,Alcohol during Pregnancy
Drugs taken by the mother enter the baby’s circulatory system by way of the placenta a system of blood vessels that connects the embryonic and maternal circulatory systems .Not all materials can move freely between the bloodstreams of the mother and the embryo however because the connecting vessels are separated by membranes . food molecules oxygen carbon dioxide and embryonic waste materials as well as some drugs , anesthetics ., alcohol, antibodies and certain viruses pass between the mother and developing child . however larger materials such as red blood cells and most bacteria cannot pass across these membrane which also as a barrier to most maternal hormones and there by protect male embryos from the influence of females hormones.
The major organs of he embryo form during the first 2 months of pregnancy. This is the most crucial period of development when drugs can cause the most damage .Noxious chemicals , drugs , alcohol ,irradiation, major viral infections and certain other materials that the mother may be exposed to during this critical period can permanently deform the embryo. although few of these substances have been definitely links to the incidence of human birth defects the effects of many chemical on he developing embryo are now being studied. Even aspirin which his readily available and massively consumed has been associated with some developmental malformations.
