A mother, 13 years of age, delivers a low-birth-weight neonate. The neonate is transferred to the neonatal intensive care unit. The mother reports receiving occasional prenatal care and has a history of excessive alcohol consumption. The growth and development of this neonate has been influenced by which of the following?

The excessive alcohol consumption of the mother.

Explanation:

Alcohol consumption during pregnancy harms the developing baby, the foetus. This is because alcohol passes from the mother's blood to the baby's blood and this affects the growth of the baby's cell.

This causes severe damage to the cells of the brain and the spinal cord.

FASD - Fetal Alcohol Spectrums Disorder is characterised by growth and developmental problems and it can range from mild to severe.

Example is the baby having small head, narrow eye and behavioural problems later in life.

Prenatal factors

Explanation:

Prenatal factors are the factors that occur during the prenatal stage which affect the growth and development of a baby.

Major prenatal factors that can affect the growth and development of a baby could include those that has to do with maternal factors such as the nutrition of the mother, exposure of the mother to toxins, alcoholism and lifestyle of the mother, maternal infection, mental illnesses of the mother etc.

Alcoholism in pregnant women, as an habit, has been linked to the cause impaired growth of a baby.

The growth and development of the neonate stated in the question has been influenced by prenatal factors, which is alcoholism.