NYM Ministries: Recognizing Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (from Today's Native Father #138)

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PRODUCT/RESOURCES INDEX Today's Native Father Archive of Articles Free booklets Marriage/Parenting Tip Calendar of workshops E-mail questions or comments	This article is from Today's Native Father, issue #138, May/June, 2005. Related articles from this issue: Future Generations Threatened by Alcohol When All the Bottles Point to You My Dining Room, A Place of Beauty
	Recognizing Fetal Alcohol Syndrome by David Hertzler
	It usually takes a skilled physician to diagnose FAS. However, parents can learn to recognize some of the symptoms. An FAS child will have symptoms from all three of the following categories. These symptoms may appear at different stages of growth, making diagnosis more difficult. 1. Growth Deficiencies failure to thrive low birth weight microcephaly (flat forehead) short and thin for age 2. Mental impairment delayed development hyperactivity learning or attention disorders poor motor coordination mental retardation 3. Abnormal facial characteristics Small eye openings Flat midface Short nose Indistinct folds between nose and upper lip Thin upper lip Epicanthal folds Low nasalbridge Minor ear abnormalities Pointed chin Infants with FAS are often irritable or jittery, experience sucking difficulties, have poor muscle tone, sleep poorly, overreact to sounds or cry excessively. Older children typically have memory problems, similar to the aging disease of Alzheimer’s. One adopted nine-year-old child with full-blown FAS displayed a long list of problems: borderline IQ trouble with memory difficulty linking cause and effect problems socializing (no friends) repeatedly forgets what she was told to do forgets simple routines makes up stories because she can’t remember what really happened a few hours earlier. FAS children are more susceptible to life-threatening infections such as pneumonia and meningitis and minor infections such as pinkeye, urinary tract infection and recurrent upper respiratory tract infection. Children with FAE may have some of the same symptoms, but they will usually be less severe. Early diagnosis and treatment greatly improve the chance of a positive outcome in the lives of these children. Unfortunately, the same factors that give the child the condition in the first place frequently delay the diagnosis and treatment. These children develop increased alcohol tolerance of their own, and so the sins of the mother are passed on to the next generation. On the other hand, under good parenting many of these children can thrive and make a positive contribution to their world.
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