Children of drug addicts are the hidden victims of drug abuse, with the mortality rate of children aged six and under whose parents are addicted to opioids being 2.3 times higher than other children their age, a National Health Research Institutes (NHRI) study showed.
A research team found that children of people with opioid use disorders have a higher mortality rate before the age of six.
The mortality rate of children with mothers who have an opioid use disorder is 3.9 times higher than those whose mothers do not have a drug habit, the study found, while children of drug addicts are about 4.2 times more likely to die an unnatural death.
The study examined data from 3,210 children born to parents with opioid addictions between 2004 and 2009 — with about one-quarter having been born after the mother enrolled in methadone treatment — and linked it with data from the National Health Insurance database and death registrations, said Chen Chuan-yu (陳娟瑜), a researcher at the institutes’ Center for Neuropsychiatric Research who took part in the study.
“Pregnant women who use heroin have a two to fourfold higher risk of premature birth, as well as increased risks of weight loss and stillbirth,” Chen said.
Increased mortality might also have stemmed from the mother neglecting the child, having developed other diseases from drug use that affected the fetus, or her opioid use contaminating her breastmilk, Chen said.
Children with a mother who uses heroin tend to miss out on prenatal checkups, as the mother is afraid that the police will discover her addiction, and seldom receive proper care, as the mother often ends up in prison and her child being entrusted to the care of others, Taiwan Care Management Association chairperson Chang Shu-hui (張淑慧) said.
Such children are typically not in a safe environment, as child abuse easily occurs when the child is exposed to those on drugs or entrusted to other people, and often lack resources, as their mothers spend a lot of money on drugs or are imprisoned, Chang said.
Some mothers who are imprisoned for illegal drug use take their children to prison with them, but the abnormal life in jail and a lack of cultural stimulation can cause the children to suffer developmental delays, she said.
The researchers said the government should help drug-addicted women of child-bearing age, with prenatal and postnatal checkups.
ANOTHER EMERGES: The CWA yesterday said this year’s fourth storm of the typhoon season had formed in the South China Sea, but was not expected to affect Taiwan Tropical Storm Gaemi has intensified slightly as it heads toward Taiwan, where it is expected to affect the country in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 8am yesterday, the 120km-radius storm was 800km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving at 9kph northwest, the agency said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued tonight at the earliest, it said, adding that the storm is projected to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday. Gaemi’s potential effect on Taiwan remains unclear, as that would depend on its direction, radius and intensity, forecasters said. Former Weather Forecast
Taiwanese barista Xie Yi-chen (謝溢宸) recently triumphed at the 2024 World Coffee Championships, taking home 1st place in the World Latte Art category. Xie, 28, impressed the judges in the final round with patterns of a whale, a moose, and a dragon in the three-day competition that took place in Copenhagen, Denmark from June 27-29, clinching the title of latte art world champion during his first time representing Taiwan on the world stage. At a press conference held by the Taiwan Coffee Association on Thursday, Xie said that creating latte art gives him a tremendous feeling of achievement. Speaking about his entries in
TRAVEL CONVENIENCE: The program is to shorten wait times while passing through airport checks and would start for Taiwanese from January next year Japan is to launch a new program to expedite entry procedures for Taiwanese starting from January next year. The Japanese government is planning to introduce new rules to shorten the time it takes foreign travelers to pass through immigration, thereby attracting more tourists to visit, Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported yesterday. An airport preclearance program would be implemented to allow foreign travelers to finish some screenings at their departure airport’s terminals and undergo simple confirmation procedures upon arrival, it said. The program would initially be applied to travelers from Taiwan from January next year and could be extended to travelers from elsewhere depending
The annual Taipei Summer Festival, which starts today, is to tone down its fireworks displays, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said on Monday. Fireworks displays are to be held at the riverside site in Datong District’s (大同) Dadaocheng (大稻埕) area on four days at this year’s festival, with the first today, and then on Wednesday next week, July 31 and Aug. 10, the department said. There were eight displays last year, with the reduction aimed at minimizing inconvenience to local residents, it said. The first three shows, which are all on Wednesdays, are to last for five minutes, while the final