What Is The Effect Of Cocaine On A Pregnant Woman?

It is very sad that the number of women who take Cocaine during pregnancy is shockingly high. The unborn child is exposed to numerous risks that are sometimes life threatening. Cocaine consumption during this period exposes the unborn child to the risks of suffering a stroke or irreversible brain damage. Both the mother and the child's life are at risk if a woman consumes cocaine during pregnancy. In the early months, the use of this drug can lead to a miscarriage. If the drug is used during the late months of pregnancy it may led to the child being born prematurely, or even still born.

The amount of danger the baby is exposed to is simply huge. A pregnant woman using cocaine is twice as likely to deliver a premature baby. The likelihood of her baby being underweight is high; this is because the drug cuts down the flow of nutrients and oxygen being supplied to the fetus. The worst comes when the baby is born with a smaller head. This means that its head is not proportionate to the body size and it has a smaller brain. If a woman stops this harmful drug consumption during her first trimester, she may reduce the chances of this occurrence.

A woman using cocaine during pregnancy has a higher chance of suffering from placenta abruption. This is a condition where the placenta pulls away from the wall of the uterus before labor.  It can lead to complications of labor and delivery. It also causes extensive bleeding which is highly fatal to both the mother and the baby. These are just some of the well known effects of using cocaine during pregnancy. In short the chances of the child leading a normal and healthy life are very minimal. The baby is more likely to start life with serious health problems. Worst of it is when it has to suffer withdrawal symptoms during detoxification.

^{Reference: http://www.marchofdimes.com/pregnancy/alcohol_illicitdrug.html}