Page 10 - Y1—CCEP Research 2019-2020

EYES INC—CCEP Yearly Report for 2019-2020 — Version 0.3 June 22, 2020
4 Background
Substance abuse during pregnancy presents a considerable health risk for women and their children. According to SAMHSA’s 2013 and 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) approximately 12% of pregnant women use alcohol during pregnancy, 18% smoke cigarettes, a third of which smoke a pack of cigarettes per day or more; while 4% of pregnant women admit use of one or more illegal drugs in the previous month. (NSDUH, 2015 & 2016). An estimated 9.6% of pregnant women aged 18-25 report non-medical use of prescription-type psychotherapeutics in the previous year (NSDUH, 2015 & 2016). In New Jersey State, 12.6% of women of childbearing age (18-44 years) reported binge drinking in the past month, compared to 11.0% overall in the U.S. (CDC, 2015). Prenatal exposure to alcohol and other drugs may lead to serious complications for newborns, including fetal alcohol syndrome, intrauterine growth retardation, and central nervous system dysfunction. After delivery, the effects of prenatal substance use continue. Infants born to mothers who used alcohol during pregnancy are more likely than non-exposed infants to display motor and language skills deficits, lower level of arousal, tremulousness, and irritability. If a woman continues substance use after giving birth, her ability to parent effectively is likely to be impaired—putting her child at increased risk.
Evidence has shown that targeted substance abuse treatment can be particularly effective with pregnant women. Some highlights of outcomes gleaned from SAMHSA’s Pregnant and Postpartum demonstration programs include a 70% risk reduction in the rate of premature delivery, an 84% risk reduction in the rate low birth-weight, and a 67% risk reduction in the infant mortality rate. The rates for each of these outcomes were lower than the rates reported for all women in the United States (substance abusers and non-substance abusers). African-American women in treatment experienced the greatest risk reduction in low birth-weight among subgroups, with a rate 12 times higher than the general (substance abusing and non-substance abusing) population (SAMHSA, 2015).
Data show that children of substance abusers are almost three times as likely to be physically or sexually assaulted, and more than four times as likely to be neglected as children of parents who are not substance abusers (CASA, 1999). In addition, children of substance abusing parents are at higher risk of delinquency, poor school performance, and emotional difficulties, i.e. aggression
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