Environmental Toxins and Fetal Development - Fetal Development

Fetal Development

Fetal development takes place while a fetus is in the mother's womb. There are three trimesters, the germinal period, the embryonic period, and the fetal period, where there are different changes occurring to the fetus and to the mother. Some examples of what takes place in the first trimester are that the placenta grows, different body parts grow, and the central nervous system forms. During the second trimester, a fetus' hair grows, the fetus starts sucking their thumb and the fetus' senses develop. By the third trimester, the fetus' body temperature becomes normal and the fetus begins to digest and excrete waste.

The prenatal environment is highly susceptible to toxicities found in the mother’s world. Recent research indicates that anywhere from one thousand to three thousand new chemicals have been introduced into the environment every year for over twenty years (Tortorello, 2012). These chemicals all have the potential to cause significant damage to a developing fetus, should they be introduced into the neonatal environment. Although the majority of these chemicals are known to cause illness in individuals of any age ( such as cigarette smoke, carbon monoxide, or lead) some are found in everyday items and supplies that one would not think twice about having around the house. In fact, many such items as lipstick, fragrant shampoo, and plastic food containers all have the potential to contain harmful chemicals that can cause serious obstacles for fetal development (Tortorello, 2012). In fact, studies have shown certain brands of lipstick and other cosmetic products to contain a toxic chemical known as ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate, an endocrine disrupter which causes interference with the body’s ability to make and secrete chemicals important for proper growth and development (Tortorello, 2012). When unknowing mothers accidentally ingest this makeup it is transferred into the neonatal environment where it can directly impair fetal growth. Despite policies put in place for the specific purpose of regulating chemicals currently on the market, safety data only exists for about fifteen percent of newly discovered chemicals, leaving tens of thousands of older chemicals unregulated and unrecorded (Tortorello, 2012). When such unregulated chemicals find their way into the fetal environment, they have a variety of adverse effects on development and future functioning. When the human fetus experiences negative effects while in the prenatal environment, it is said to have experienced a “developmental toxicity” (Pohl et al., 1998). Developmental toxicities can result in structural abnormalities, altered growth, functional deficiencies, congenital neoplasia, or even death for the fetus (Pohl et al., 1998).