Various Factors affecting growth and development

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Various Factors affecting growth and development

  • Younger mothers- having a baby under the age of 16 years chances a higher risk of having premature babies, who suffer from anaemia and high blood pressure.

  • Older mothers- studies have shown that mothers over the age of 35 having children chances a higher risk of having babies with a chromosomal abnormality. The most common abnormality associated with age is Down’s syndrome, as to this a test is offered routinely to women over 37 years of age.

  • Problems can occur such as breech presentation, pre eclampsia, low birth weight and neural tube defects during pregnancy. This can cause early delivery (premature babies), high blood pressure, lack of oxygen, which can result in seizes or brain damage.

  • Drugs (pre-scribed/Non prescribed) - this can cause low birth weight and development delay. The mother can also become withdrawn and experience distress which can also be passed on to the baby.

  • Prescribed drugs must always be issued by a doctor however, some drugs prescribed can be very dangerous and effect development an example of this is in the 1960s a drug called Thalidomide was given to many women to help contain a healthy pregnancy but instead caused babies to be born with severe limb defections.
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  • Drugs- drugs such as cocaine and heroin can cause the foetus to grow slowly and become underweight, babies will be born addicts  which as a result suffer from painful withdrawal symptoms

  • Smoking- this reduces placental blood flow which causes the baby to receive less oxygen. Babies who are born to mothers that smoke are more likely to be premature or underweight.

  • Alcohol- if taken accessibly the baby may be born with foetal alcohol syndrome. This causes the baby to have characteristics facial deformities, mental problems and stunned growth,

  • Poor nutrition- having a poor diet through out ...

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