Though the coke babies were smaller than average, they were free of problems typically blamed on the drug, including gastrointestinal upsets, hyperreactivity and tremors. Babies who had been exposed to large amounts of alcohol displayed more signs of withdrawal. Cocaine, the Emory group wrote, “appeared to have a smaller impact on neonatal behavior than do alcohol, cigarettes and/or marijuana.”
However, cocaine can prevent women from carrying to term-and it’s premature birth that causes much of the suffering among classic cocaine babies. The Atlanta researchers examined full-term infants, Coles told NEWSWEEK, “because we wanted to see what these babies look like, given that everything else is equal.” (They plan to include coke-exposed preemies in a second study, but have found only a few who are healthy.) The researchers wrote: “The extent to which cocaine has specific effects distinct from those associated with polydrug use and the lifestyle common among addicted and substance-using women remains unclear.” Though they warn against forming generalizations, they’re encouraged by their findings because “they suggest the prognosis for the exposed child may be less ominous than has been feared.” Clearly, it’s best for babies not to be exposed to drugs in the womb. But for the resilient ones who are, there now appears to be at least some small hope of fighting back.
