UNBORN SUFFER EFFECTS OF MOTHERS' METH USE

Elizabeth took her first hit of meth before she was born. It was a
toe-curling experience, her grandmother, Sandy Chamberlain, said.

The exposure to methamphetamine is thought to have caused her toes to form
at an angle, one of the more benign effects of her mother's drug use,
Chamberlain said.

Now 4 years old, Elizabeth has speech difficulties and behavioral problems,
including unprovoked bouts of anger. She is one of a growing number of
children born each year with prenatal exposure to meth.

Researchers think thousands of Oklahoma babies are born each year with
symptoms of meth exposure. Many more likely go unnoticed.

Long-term studies Oklahoma researchers are doing long-term studies to find
out how the exposure affects a child from birth to adulthood.

A National Institute of Drug Abuse study involves researchers from the
University of Oklahoma College of Medicine in Tulsa and five other
universities nationwide.

From a pool of 13,800 babies born in four states from Sept. 1, 2002, to
Aug. 31, 2003, including at Hillcrest Medical Center in Tulsa, researchers
got consent from 1,632 mothers to screen their newborns.

Of those, 5.2 percent of moms admitted to methamphetamine use during
pregnancy. They were promised confidentiality and their babies were
enrolled in the study, said Dr. Penny Grant, a lead researcher and
pediatrics professor at the University of Oklahoma School of Medicine in Tulsa.

The mothers, on average, said they used meth three times a week in the
first trimester and two times a week in rest of the pregnancy.

Signs of exposure Researchers think prenatal meth exposure can cause lower
birth weight, premature birth, brain hemorrhaging and stroke, poor ability
to suck, limp muscles, irritability and difficulty sleeping.

"If they have been severely exposed, they are floppy and look like limp
noodles. They are pale, they don't suck, they forget to breathe," Grant said.

The children later may suffer language delays, learning disabilities,
hyperactivity, emotional disturbances and problems socializing.

Researchers plan to follow the babies' progress for years.

Doctors said there are no clear answers to what compels pregnant women to
keep using meth, a highly addictive stimulant made from such chemicals as
fertilizer, camping fuel and drain cleaner. Women tell them they know how
bad meth is, but they can't stop.

"There's a feeling of guilt and shame and sometimes a disconnect from their
pregnancy and baby," said Regina Knell, director of the Tulsa Women and
Children's Center, an inpatient treatment center in Tulsa.

Jennifer Sanders is a patient at Knell's center. She snorted meth every day
she was pregnant two years ago. Her toddler has asthma and a blood
disorder, which Sanders worries may be the result of her prenatal exposure
to meth.

"I wanted to stop," Sanders said. "I prayed to God every night to stop, but
I couldn't."

Sanders' baby was taken into state custody at birth, as were two older
children. In treatment, Sanders has been reunited with her children and
hopes to start a new life with them.

Four-year-old Elizabeth has been in her grandparents custody since she was
3 months old. Sandy Chamberlain said she feared the baby's welfare would
fall victim to her mother's drug addiction.

The Chamberlains first noticed developmental problems when Elizabeth didn't
try to babble or learn speech. She became very angry when she didn't get
her way.

She's now enrolled in a speech lab and is learning to use words instead of
fists.

But Chamberlain said her granddaughter still faces challenges, emotionally
and developmentally, that may be lifelong.

"There are times I look at her and I think 'What does life hold for her?'
Chamberlain said through tears.