Childbirth is the most striking and essential event in most people’s lives; a healthy lifestyle and self-care characterize normal fetal development. One must remember that heredity and the environment combine factors that affect average growth (Berk, 2017). For normal child development, a number of rules should be followed. They include sufficient mental workload, good personal examples from parents, and social education. At a young age, children remember the behavior patterns of their parents; thus, they should be characterized by kindness, love, and mutual understanding. Parents should provide the child with peers’ communication at an early age, leading to balanced social development. In addition, there is an essential concept that one needs to know during pregnancy – teratogens.
Teratogens are substances and habits that are harmful to health and can lead to abnormal fetal growth. Nowadays, among the most common teratogens are alcohol, cigarettes, antidepressants, and drugs. Tara (2018) claims that the effect of a teratogen is influenced depending on its dosage. In other words, the more amount is, the more influence it will exert. To avoid negative consequences, one has to abandon bad habits (if any) completely. It is essential to realize the responsibility of the decisions that a person makes when pregnant.
According to Tara (2019), the impact of teratogens may vary depending on the organism and mother and on the environmental issues. My sister’s friend, although being pregnant, kept going to drink alcohol every week. Unfortunately, her child had some health problems after being born, which were caused by teratogen, in this case – alcohol. In any case, for harmonious development, it is necessary to follow a healthy lifestyle, as this will be a good example for the child’s further development.
References
Berk, L. (2017). Development through the lifespan. (7th ed.). Pearson.
Kuther, T. L. (2018). Lifespan development in context: A topical approach. Sage.
Kuther, T. L. (2019). Child and adolescent development in context. Sage.