Many adoptive and foster parents and kinship care providers welcome children with a history of exposure during pregnancy to substances like alcohol, methamphetamines, marijuana, heroin, crack, oxycodone, prescription drugs, or other drugs. Prospective parents must often consider whether they can manage the risk factors of prenatal substance exposure when preparing to adopt a child.

Exposure to alcohol and drugs can cause brain damage in a developing fetus. Therefore, parents and caregivers must understand the potential impacts of prenatal substance exposure. The effects can be long-lasting, including Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) and other physical, cognitive, or developmental delays.

Parents and caregivers need evidence-based tools to support children with the issues associated with in-utero substance exposure. Creating a Family has interviewed many experts in the field, including pediatricians, therapists, and experts on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. The content we provide will support parents who are considering adopting a child with prenatal exposure and parents and caregivers already raising kids with any substance exposure.