What can smoking weed do to a baby?

Question

My older sister is 22, shes pregnant with #2. It's due in October and I'm worried, because she has smoked all through her pregnancy. Not only had she smoked cigarettes but she's smoked weed throughout being pregnant.

Will the baby be alright now and when it is older?

What effects could this have on the baby?

Answer 1

Can cause the child not to have a long term memory, can cause the child to be less immune to common ailments and therefore subject to long term illnesses...

Answer 2

She is a utter disgrace, some people can't have children & she should be honoured to have a child

EDIT: Don't come on here with a questions like that & tell people what there OPINIONS should be.  Anyone with half  brain will know it is wrong,  she should be taken to Social Services before the child is even born.  She is a stupid girl.

Answer 3

my boyfriend's friend just recently had a baby his girlfriend smoked weed and she did he. She is a very healthy little girl. I wouldnt worry to much about it. I just know when im pregnant I dont want that sh*t around me at all.  

Answer 4

well the child can have problems that are accoitaed with normal cigarette smoking during pregnancy but apart from the tool that seems to have no idea i wouldnt be to worried women smoked for hundreds of years and gave birth to countless childred probably milloins at this stage and until they discovered that there was small possibilities of astmah etc nobody cared so y shoud u in fairness it ant what ild be worrying about the most to be honest .....  but sure hay what if u nephew or neice comes along with a big set of dreads and a carriban accent that be failry good hehehe

Answer 5

Kill it! your sister doesn't have the right to call herself a mother. She should be ashamed of herself!!

Answer 6

yeah kids of drug abusers can be born with adiction and will need a period where they have to be weaned off the drug and thats really a problem in itself, even with some of the lack of info on long term effects and birth deffects who would come on top of that

http://www.otispregnancy.org/pdf/marijua...

Answer 7

perhaps she will be Lucky and the baby be fine,,i hope it is,,but what is she thinking eh,,if she doesn't care for it whilst its in the womb then god only knows what she will be like when he or she is born,,how selfish is she or what!!!!!

Answer 8

I wouldn't be as worried about the weed as the cigarette smoke, it has horrible side effects on a growing fetus, like low birth weight, underdeveloped lungs, premature labor etc.  There is no statistics showing that pot harms a fetus, there is no withdrawal from weed, but there is from tobacco.  If she loves this baby she should quit doing both as it is better to be safe than sorry.  

Answer 9

It really all depends.

That really bugs me though, because people that are that careless, obviously don't deserve to be parents. That's just wrong.

But.. I've known people to smoke both cigarettes & weed all throughout a pregnancy, and the baby turned out fine.

I wouldn't look forward to it though.

There is a HUGE chance that that baby will have mental and/or physical problems.

): That's really too bad.

Answer 10

The baby could be born addicted & suffer withdrawals after birth & it could be born with brain damage.

Answer 11

it really bothers me when people are not responsible yet bring kids into this already messed up world, how selfish of her to do this when that little baby has no choice in the matter, i dont know the medical effects but it cant be good i would not spit on people like this if they were on fire because there are so many childless couples out there who would give anything for a child. if she does this now what does the future hold for this child? tell her now in fact show her the responses you get to this question and see if she feels the same then!

Answer 12

It could do alot of harm (sorry to tell you) the baby might be addicted and might have to be weened off...which can cause damage to her health and might even be born with birth defects

BUT she might be okay.... you just have to wait and see

Best of luck

Answer 13

what mom does.. baby does..

what mom eats.. baby eats...

so the baby could be addicted when its born..

its longs could be underdeveloped.

she could miscarry.

go into extremely preterm labor.

her baby's life is in danger.

how could she do that to her own child.

Answer 14

Honey only God knows if it will affect the baby. I'll be praying they it will be fine and that your sister will stop this before it is too late. I have many people I love in the graveyard today because of smoking cigarettes. Maybe when the baby is born that will give her a reason to quit.

Answer 15

Some people should be sterilised at birth and your sister is one of them

Answer 16

they can be born under weight and stuff if she smoked alot with them. its kind of the same as smoking cigerettes but a little worse. I think it could cause some damage but it doesnt to alot of people I know some friends who smoked pot while pregnant and it didnt do much to there babys might have just been some underweight. you will not know for sure till they get older if they do have a problem.

Answer 17

First of all, the baby will not come out addicted. Marijuana isn't a physically addictive drug like heroin or nicotine.

Secondly, I know a couple women who smoked marijuana during their pregnancies and all of there kids (3 years later) seem to have developmental issues and emotionally lacking. Its debatable that these deficiencies are cause by environment or exposure to drugs. If you were going to smoke marijuana while pregnant, then you are probably somewhat dysfunctional, therefor your child maybe as well because of your situation.

Social Services will drug test your sister when the child is born and if there is any marijuana in her system, they will take the baby, then you have to go through a VERY long process to get the baby back. One of the children I'm referencing, was taken upon birth because the mother tested dirty. They continue to smoke marijuana in the room with their 3 year old child and just had another baby. To say the least, I've stop associating with them all together. In the end they did get the child back, but they had there houses searched and evaluated; if you live with your sister, plan to have cops as your house if she tests dirty.

Unfortunately, you cant do anything about it... just try and teach the child as much as possible to counteract the possible side effects.

Answer 18

i would say its very irresponsible to smoke any thing whilst pregnant,  

Answer 19

its a proven mediacal fact that smoking weed when pregnant can cause harm to the baby the baby may not learn to pick things up as quickly so it can harm them in their learning skills, you can find out all the true effects and facts if you do a goole search  

Answer 20

http://www.webmd.com/baby/news/20030325/...

Smoking marijuana during pregnancy may cause lasting behavioral and mental defects in the child. A new study in animals suggests that children who are exposed to marijuana in the womb may suffer from a variety of long-term problems even if they aren't born with obvious birth defects.

Researchers say that although marijuana is the most widely used illegal drug among women of childbearing age, little is known about the side effects of prenatal exposure to marijuana. They say previous studies have produced conflicting results because it's difficult to account for potential contaminants frequently found in marijuana and contributing effects of other drug and alcohol use.

In this study, researchers examined the effects of exposure to an artificial component of marijuana called WIN in the offspring of rats who received the synthetic cannabinoid while pregnant. The mother rats received a daily injection of the drug that was comparable to a low-to-moderate marijuana dose inhaled by a human smoker.

The results are published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Researchers Giampaolo Mereu of the University of Cagliari in Italy, and colleagues compared how these marijuana-exposed offspring compared to others rats in terms of memory and motor activity. They found that the rats exposed to WIN in the womb were significantly more hyperactive than the other rats, but these differences diminished as the rats reached adulthood.

The effects of exposure on the rats' learning abilities were more long lasting. The WIN-exposed rats consistently scored lower than others on learning tests throughout their lives.

Researchers say they also found that WIN interfered with the release of a brain transmitter called glutamate, a key chemical associated with learning and memory processing.

Although these findings have not yet been confirmed in humans, the authors say these effects on brain chemistry and activity are consistent with existing data showing learning problems in children exposed to marijuana while in the womb.

Answer 21

It all depends on how much weed and cigarettes she is smoking.  The cigarettes are more detrimental to the baby's health then the weed is.  Lots of women smoke weed in early pregnancy to combat morning sickness. Now before everyone jumps on me about that, I didn't do it, but I know people who have.  Their babies turned out perfectly healthy.

Answer 22

it wont do it any good but through experience when my friends baby was born she was absolutly fantastic , slept nearly every night and was so laid back all the time i put it down to the weed , but i wouldnt advise it  

Answer 23

your sister is a d**k its proven that smoking weed in pregnancy can cause the baby to have a stroke in the womb!

seriously get her to read pregnancy for dummies it will scare the **** out of her!

Answer 24

Here is a site you can go to for more info - too much for me to paste!

http://www.goaskalice.columbia.edu/2227....

Please try to shine some light on your sisters views with this.  I understand addiction so it isn't as black & white as some feel; but it is time for her to make some right choices for the baby!

Best wishes!

Answer 25

My sister smoked while she was pregnant.  There were no issues with my niece while she was a baby but she now has attention issues and learning disabilities.  Of course then there is the little problem with social services.    

Answer 26

my sister has two children & she's 21. And she smoked weed with both of her children. one is 4 and the other is 9months. And nothing is wrong with them their actually kinda smart.....

but i don't think it really matters wat you do at this point....she is about to pop soon.....the baby's development of brain, and heart is done....it may effect the lungs or send her into early labor tho!  

Answer 27

people like your sister do not deserve that miracle....how cna there be pl like that? ill tell you what is going to happen, the baby will be born like 2-4 punds and can possibly die....ur sister is cruel...the baby can be born with a mental issue ..poor little innocent creauture....your sister should be ashamed!

Answer 28

I'm sorry that you are the one taking responsibility for your sister's actions, but, I have known many women that smoked both weed and ciggerates while being pregnant and there may be a low birth weight but in the end I think the baby will be okay. My mom smoked through her entire pregnancy with my sister and myself...I wouldn't worry yourself out too much over it.  

Answer 29

Smoking cigarettes can definitely harm the baby, not just now but when it is older too. Not only can it cause death, but the baby could be premature, low birthweight, have mental retardation, etc. etc.

However, smoking weed does nothing to the baby.

Answer 30

In the very few studies available, there appears to be an increase in the incidence of premature labor and low birthweight. In cases in which pot had been tainted with a stimulant (cocaine, for example), there was an increased risk for dangerously fast labors (less than three hours) and for placental abruption (separation of the placenta from the uterine wall).

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) notes that research has shown that some babies born to women who abused marijuana during their pregnancies display altered responses to visual stimuli, increased tremulousness (trembling or shaking), and a high-pitched cry -- any of which may indicate neurological problems in development. During the preschool years, marijuana-exposed children have been observed to perform tasks involving sustained attention and memory more poorly than nonexposed kids do. Then, in the school years, these kids of pot smokers are more likely to exhibit deficits in problem-solving skills, memory and the ability to remain attentive.

In short, marijuana during pregnancy (including secondhand pot smoke) should be viewed the same as any other illicit drug, and be avoided at all costs.

Answer 31

It certainly won't help the poor little mite. I'm not sure exactly what damage can be done, but any risk is too much risk when you're responsible for another human being. If your sister is this laid back about her child's welfare now, I'd be very concerned about when he/she is actually born.