Criminalization of pregnant women.doc - Running head...

Running head: CRIMINALIZATION 1
Criminalization of pregnant women and the illusion maternal-fetal conflict
Name
Institution

CRIMINALIZATION
2
The issue of incarcerating pregnant women has brought about a controversy since some
individuals support whereas some oppose. According to Kylie Alexandra, incarceration is not a
solution to curb drug use and protect the fetus among the mothers who abuse drugs. Alexandra
argues that drug use among expectant mothers needs a public health response as this would bring
about a long lasting solution. Various conducted in Florida indicate that the abuse of cocaine and
more so by expectant mothers tend to affect the development of a fetus. Besides, abuse of
cocaine may cause a small head circumference, abnormality of the urinary tract and premature
birth, and this has been an issue. Infants exposed to cocaine may suffer from different types of
stress, language development and shortened attention span among other conditions (Alexandra,
n.d). However, a few infant health problems can be attributed to cocaine exposure. Pregnancy