Chapter 3: Prenatal Development, Teratogens, Maternal Factors, Parenthood Flashcards
Motivations for Parenthood:
Why Have Children?
- Giving/Gaining affection
- Fun
- Being accepted as a mature & responsible adult
- Building a legacy
- Sense of accomplishment as children grow
- Having someone to take care of you in old age*
- So kids can be contributing members of the household
Why NOT Have Children?
- Loss of freedom
- Financial strain
- Family/Work conflict
- Interference with mother’s employment opportunities
- Risks of raising children in any given environment
- Reduced time with partner
- Loss of privacy
- Fear of failure
The stigma of not wanting children**
Is there a Best Time during Adulthood to Have a Child?
Negative side of waiting to have children:
• Fertility declines for women & men as they age.
• Ability to care for a child with enthusiasm & energy declines with age.
Positive side of waiting to have children:
• Resources for caring with a child increase with age.
• Parents can establish themselves at work if they wait to have children.
Prenatal Development:
Conception
Read page 96 for review!!!!
Prenatal Development:
Period of the Zygote (weeks 1-2)
The first cell duplication takes 30 hours, but by the 4th day, 60-70 cells exist!
Between the 7th and 9th days, implantation occurs, and the blastocyst starts to grow.
It forms a membrane called the Amnion that encloses the organism in the amniotic fluid.
This happens within the first 2 weeks. As many as 30% of zygote’s do not survive this period.
The placenta & umbilical cord help to bring nutrients to the zygote.
Prenatal Development:
Period of the Embryo
Implantation to the 8th week of pregnancy.
Most of the 1st Trimester.
Last half of the 1st month:
• Ectoderm (nervous system, skin)
• Mesoderm (muscles, skeleton, circulatory system, other internal organs)
• Endoderm (digestive system, lungs, urinary tract, glands)
• Neural tube forms
Second month:
• Eyes, ears, nose, jaw, and neck form
• Intestines grow, heart develops chambers, liver and spleen take over production of blood cells
Prenatal Development:
Period of the Fetus
9th week to end of pregnancy
Third Month of 1st Trimester:
• Organs, muscles, and nervous system start to become organized and connected
• Fetus starts moving up to 25 times per hour
• Sex can be determined by ultrasound at 12 weeks
2nd Trimester:
• Between 17-20 weeks, the mother could start to feel movements
• Up to 22 weeks, the fetus still couldn’t survive outside of the mother
• Brain growth allows the fetus to be stimulated or irritated by sounds
• And…let the marketing begin!
3rd Trimester:
• Age of viability: Between 22-26 weeks the baby can survive outside of the womb with much medical assistance
• The brain keeps developing (cerebral cortex)
• The fetus keeps growing!
• Greater responsiveness to
external stimulation
• Acquire taste & odor preferences
• By the end, personality begins to develop, and movement subsides
True or False?
Most babies are born healthy and most hazards can e avoided.
TRUE!
True or False?
There are very few prenatal factors that can harm a developing person.
FALSE!
True or False?
Prenatal exposures to a dangerous substance is only harmful in the first trimester of pregnancy.
FALSE!
Is the prenatal environment that important??
YES!
There are many factors that can negatively impact the developing person.
Teratogen
refers to any environmental agent that causes damage during the prenatal period, birth defects, or death.
What are some factors that would influence prenatal development?
Drugs Alcohol Cigarettes Diseases Poor nutrition Stressors Chemicals
Almost anything can impact a developing fetus
Teratogens:
Important factors
- Dose
- Heredity
- Other Negative Influences
- Prenatal Age
Teratogens:
Prescription & Nonprescription Drugs
Thalidomide (sedative)
• Damage to ears, heart, kidneys, and genitals
• Below avg intelligence
Diethylstilbestrol (DES)
• Vaginal cancer, malformed uterus, infertility
Isotretinoin (taken for severe acne) can also cause severe birth defects
Aspirin causes major birth defects even in small doses
Caffeine in excess can cause damage to the prenatal child
Teratogens:
Illegal Drugs
Cocaine, heroin, and methadone:
Can cause low birth weight, physical defects, breathing difficulties, and death around the time of birth.
Prenatal & Postnatal neonatal abstinence syndrome:
Associated with alcohol, morphine/opiates, antidepressants, Benzodiazepine.
Lifelong challenges are associated with illegal drug use while pregnant
Marijuana:
attention, memory, academic achievement difficulties
Teratogens:
Tobacco
11% of women smoke during pregnancy
More cigarettes leads to greater likelihood of child experiencing
prematurity, impaired heart rate & breathing during sleep, infant death, and asthmas & cancer in later childhood.
Deciding to stop smoking at any time will increase the child’s likelihood of a healthy life.
The harmful agent in cigarettes in nicotine.
The hazards of smoking are not just to the smoker. Beware of second hand smoke, too.
Teratogens:
Alcohol
Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)
Partial fetal alcohol syndrome (p- FAS)
Alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder (ARND)
More alcohol = more problems for young children
Alcohol interferes with production and migration of neurons in the primitive neural tube (brain size decreases, damage to brain structures, abnormalities in brain functioning)
Body uses lots of oxygen to metabolize alcohol, which takes oxygen away from a developing fetus.
Intergenerational transmission
Teratogens
Radiation
Exposure to radiation can cause DNA mutation
Unfortunately, for most of the examples in the book, the mothers who were exposed to radiation didn’t know it was happening or couldn’t escape it (e.g. Hiroshima or Chernobyl)
For most expectant mothers, it’s a good precaution to avoid x- rays whenever possible
Teratogens:
Environmental Pollution
Mercury –> brain damage, physical deformities, mental
retardation, brain damage, etc.
Lead –> prematurity, low birth weight, brain damage, physical defects.
Can be found in old flaking paint or industrial materials
Teratogens:
Infectious Disease
Viruses:
n Rubella (worst b/t wks 3-8)àorgan damage
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) which leads to AIDS:
• Mothers pass the virus 20-30% of the time
• Most babies born with AIDS will not live past their 1st birthday, and 90% won’t make it to their 3rd birthday
• ZDV can reduce the chance of transmission by up to 95%
Bacterial & Parasitic Diseases.
• Toxoplasmosis: from undercooked food or contact with infected cats/mice
Prenatal Environmental Influences:
Maternal Exercise
Walking, swimming, biking, or an aerobic exercise is good!
It is associated with increased birth weight, reduced risk for complications.
Too much exercise is not good (more than 30 minutes a day/5 days a week)
Third trimester makes exercise difficult
Exercise, overall, can ease the symptoms of pregnancy (back pain, difficulty breathing)
Always let your doctor know what you’re doing!