Crack Baby

In the 1980's the term "crack baby" was coined to describe infants damaged by their mother's use of crack cocaine while pregnant. While no one knew the long-term effects of this prenatal exposure, the media covered the issue to the point where it sounded like an epidemic. Now that the issue has ceased to be in the spotlight, what is the status of these babies? Is the crack baby phenomenon a myth or are babies born addicted and destined to a lifetime of struggles? This review of the literature will explain that crack babies do indeed face many medical issues and their issues impact us as a society. The issues you may want to look at in your research papers include:

1. First, crack cocaine will be described and statistics regarding the extent of its use will be detailed.
2. Next, studies regarding cocaine's direct effect on newborns will be described, both supporting and opposing the crack baby phenomenon.
3. Last, alternative explanations given to oppose the crack baby myth will be presented, and reasons why cocaine cannot be discounted will be given.

Crack Baby Myth

People who argue that the crack baby is a myth cite the deficit of research linking use of cocaine and fetal damage as a point in their argument. In truth, no research has ever found a causal effect between the two. Furthermore, studies of children born to mothers with multiple issues did not find long-term damage. Instead, they found that within two years, "crack babies" exhibited a normal developmental functioning level. There are, however, scientific studies that, while not finding a direct cause-effect relationship, have provided significant correlations between cocaine exposure and detrimental effects.