Drugs in the woomb: college student perceptions of maternal v. fetal rights

FRANÇAIS :
Enquête effectuée auprès de 523 étudiants sur la culpabilité d'une femme enceinte consommatrice de certaines drogues durant sa grossesse. Tabac, alcool et aspirine sont perçus comme ayant les mêmes conséquences sur le foetus tandis que la cocaïne est considérée comme la plus délétère et l'Accutane* (médicament prescrit) comme le moins délétère. 75% des étudiants consultés emprisonneraient une femme enceinte consommatrice de cocaïne pendant sa grossesse et 16% seulement le feraient pour usage d'Accutane*. 87% des étudiants qui croient que le foetus est un enfant considérent l'usage de ces drogues comme mauvais traitement à enfant et emprisonneraient volontiers les mères coupables. Il est suggéré que les programmes d'éducation sur les drogues accordent une place plus importante aux potentiels délétères des médicaments prescrits envers le foetus.
ENGLISH :
A survey of 523 college undegraduates regarding a pregnant woman's culpability for the use of specific drugs during pregnacy indicated that a rank order of the relative safety of the drugs existed in the minds of the respondents. Tobacco, alcohol and aspirin were perceived as similar in their consequences to the fetus, while cocaine was considered to be the most deleterious and Accutane*, the least deleterious. Although 75 percent would imprison a pregnant woman who used cocaine, only 16 percent would do so for the use of Accutane*, a prescription drug. The 87 percent of the students who believed that the fetus was a child, were more likely to consider the use of the five drugs during pregnancy as a form of child abuse and were also more willing to imprison the "offending" women. It was suggested that drug education programs need to place more emphasis on the potentially deleterious consequences of prescribed medicines to the fetus. (Author's abstract)