Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

University of Akron Jeff Lakins

QuickTime and a decompressor are needed to see this picture.

FASD
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FASD) is a disorder that is connected with children whose mother drank alcohol while she was pregnant. This is a very serious condition, and there has been an increase in diagnosis over the years. The effects can include not only physical and behavioral, but it can also include learning difficulties. There is not a safe amount to drink, as well as a safe time to drink during a pregnancy. The following effects can be seen in a child that has FASD: -Poor Coordination -Lower Body Weight -Hyperactive Behavior -Difficulty Paying Attention -Poor Memory -Difficulty in School subjects (Especially Math) -Poor Reasoning & Judgment Skills

My Research
While searching the Internet on my topic, I couldnt help but notice the multiple websites on FASD. This was an interesting discovering due to the lack of publicity that is covered in the news and newspapers. Throughout my course in college I have learned how dangerous and common this disorder can be. It not only affects the kids as an individual, but also as a student. If Im going to be a teacher in the classroom I feel that I need to know how to handle an individual that may have this disorder and to help them through their studies. While researching my topic I felt that it was especially important to look at government medical websites. These are very reliable and trustworthy sources that can supply fantastic information on FASD.

Page 2 of 3

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

Websites
My first website that I discovered was the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. This was a great website due to the wide range of facts that it supported. I was easily able to apply the five Ws while evaluating the site and found interesting facts. Not only did this site reach out to mothers, but it also supported them if the had an alcohol addiction. The website did a great job of covering the Who by supplying organizational programs for moms.
QuickTime and a decompressor are needed to see this picture.

The second website was PubMed, which is the largest U.S National Library. This website did an awesome job of supplying the Where by giving support groups for parents to attend. This was very enjoyable to se in a website due to the difficulties that come with FASD. This website passed all of my five Ws due to the wide range of facts and details. I was able to learn new information such as different screenings to see if your child may have the disorder. My third website was the FASD Center, which was able to cover the What more thoroughly than my other sites. It was intriguing to read that there are sub categories for FASD, such as Alcohol-Related Neurodevelopment Disorder (ARND). The website did lack where due to the absence of facilities that a mother could reach out to. This was a bit disappointing due to the other websites having this as a resource. The next website was the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. This website did a wonderful job of giving a solid support of how in their website. They not only supplied the reader with environmental factors, but also said that genetic can play a role in FASD. This was fascinating to read and set this website apart from the others. The site also supplied the reader with a list of risk factors so the mothers could be cautious of adapting to them. The last website I evaluated was MedlinePlus. This website was unique because it covered the when by telling mothers when they should seek help. This was enjoyable to read as I was evaluating because of the mass support that this site gave to mothers even if they had an alcohol problem. This site did a great job of also mentioning support groups and giving several exams that they would advise an individual to take, if they had an alcohol problem.

Strengths/Weaknesses
The Internet is an amazing tool to use for research. There are several steps that you must use to make sure that you maximize your studies. The advanced option tap is great to use to narrow down the sites to only be government certified. This then creates a list of reliable websites that are safe to use on your projects. There is also multiple websites that are created that will give you different views o a topic which can only spark new views and thought on the subject that youre studying.

University of Akron

There are also several weaknesses that come with using the Internet as your primary source of information. There are many of websites that have duplicated information and can be unhelpful in the manner of finding new information. Many websites are also unofficial and not medical or government certified. While I did my evaluating I was able to make the domain to my fitting, and narrow my results to only show government sites. This then gave me the ease of mind that they were not only accurate, but also safe to use.

References
"CDC - FASD, Home - NCBDDD." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Feb. 2013. <http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/fasd/index.h " FASD Center for Excellence ." FASD Center for Excellence . N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Feb. 2013. <http://www.fascenter.samhsa.gov/index.a "Fetal Alcohol Exposure | National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)." National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Feb. 2013. <http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcoholhealth/fetal-alcohol-exposure>. "Fetal alcohol syndrome: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia." National Library of Medicine - National Institutes of Health. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Feb. 2013. <http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/enc "Fetal alcohol syndrome - PubMed Health." National Center for Biotechnology Information. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Feb. 2013. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth