Introduction
Historically, it was recognized that certain substances that were harmful to the pregnant woman were often as harmful,if not more harmful, to the fetus as well. In the last century evidence has emerged that even environmental exposures that are not overtly harmful to the mother herself could cause serious harm to the developing fetus. Substances that caused birth defects and other adverse effects to the fetus, in the absence of recognized toxicity to mothers, were: the estrogenic hormone diethylstilbestrol (often taken by mothers during pregnancy and found to cause genital abnormalities); thalidomide (taken to control nausea during pregnancy and found to cause limb abnormalities); and methylmercury (a neurotoxin found in contaminated fish. In addition, more recent research has shown evidence of the adverse effects associated with the consumption of ethanol during pregnancyMore recently, maternal tobacco smoking and even environmental tobacco smoke, modest consumption of ethanol during pregnancy, and low levels of exposure to lead and mercury have been found to be have adverse impacts on fetal growth and development.
Read more about this topic: Environmental Toxins And Fetal Development
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