Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
Fetal alcohol syndrome or FAS is a medical terminology used to describe the varied, and often devastating, effects of alcohol consumption on the brain of the developing fetus. Maternal alcohol crosses the placental barrier and can stunt fetal growth or weight, create distinctive facial stigmata, damage neurons and brain structures, and/or cause other physical anomalies. While prenatal alcohol exposure does not automatically result in FAS, the U.S. Surgeon General advises pregnant women to abstain from alcohol use due to the risk of FAS.
The main effect of FAS is permanent central nervous system damage, in which developing brain cells and structures have been capriciously garbled, malformed, or underdeveloped by prenatal alcohol exposure. The risk of brain damage exists during each trimester, since the fetal brain develops throughout the entire pregnancy. Brain damage related to FAS may or may not impact IQ but often creates primary functional impairments in behavior and other secondary disabilities.
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