According to the U.S. Census Bureau 10,657 babies are born every day and twenty of these babies are born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Alcohol is the most commonly abused substance by pregnant women because it legal and socially acceptable (Mercer, 1990). Many pregnant women are not aware of the complications that go along with pregnancy. Even more young women see pregnancy as a way of bringing a life into the world but do not change any of their habits when it comes to drinking and drug use. Most pregnant women choose not to stop drinking and using drugs. They don't think ahead to the damages that aren't so obvious that could harm their unborn child. When alcohol is combined with pregnancy it can cause devastating effects in the fetus (Seachrist, 1995).
             Fetal alcohol syndrome is characterized by structural abnormalities of the head and face including: a smaller head usually with mental defects, flattening of the upper jaw area, retardation, decreased birth weight and length, developmental delays, intellectual impairment, hyperactivity, altered sleep pattern, feeding problems, perceptual problems, impaired concentration, mood problems, and speech problems.
             Fetal alcohol syndrome is the number one cause of mental retardation in the United States and is one hundred percent preventable (Olson, 1994). It is a national health problem that was first identified, treated, and found in the late 1960's.
             The term fetal alcohol syndrome made to describe the pattern of the abnormalities found in some children born to alcoholic women. It was quite obvious just by looking at the effects the alcohol had and it was very noticeable and was distinct from all other patterns of malformation in the fetus; there was a significant association found between the alcohol consumption rates during pregnancy and a lower general cognitive index of these children (Seachrist, 1995).
             Alcohol use during pregnancy also increases the ri...