Help for Children Exposed to Methamphetamine in the Womb

Posted by azdrugrehabctr on January 30, 2016 under Addiction Trends, AZ Drug Rehab News | Comments are off for this article

Mothers who abuse methamphetamine while pregnant often give birth to babies who experience behavioral and emotional problems throughout life. Methamphetamine is a manmade drug that is often primarily comprised of chemicals found around the house. Methamphetamine provides a high that is more intense and longer lasting than cocaine, which could explain why addicts who become pregnant have a difficult time abstaining.

According to researchers, almost 25% of pregnant women who seek treatment at state-run drug programs are abusing methamphetamine. While it has been made clear to the public that abusing drugs while pregnant is dangerous to the baby and oftentimes harms the child for the rest of their life, addicts are still putting their unborn child at risk by the continued exposure to drugs such as this. In order to help children who were born with methamphetamine already in their system, researchers have sought out more effective treatments to behavioral and emotional problems that are common among them.

“In the first study of its kind, we followed children, who experienced prenatal methamphetamine exposure, up to the age of 7.5 years and found that adversities, such as poverty and continued drug abuse by a parent, contributed to behavioral and emotional control issues. While additional study is needed, these findings indicate that providing a supportive home life for children with prenatal methamphetamine exposure would reduce their behavioral and emotional control issues,” explained Lynne M. Smith, one of the authors of the study.

While it may not come as a surprise to many that children benefit from stable home environments, it does underscore the importance of educating mothers when it comes to providing the best life for their children. Mothers who have abused methamphetamine while pregnant may feel hopeless when it comes to making it up to the child. However, focusing on providing a stable, secure environment for these children will greatly reduce the behavioral and emotional problems caused by early exposure to the drug.