Rates of substance use among pregnant women also vary by age groups … Results from the 2004 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: Detailed tables on pregnancy. National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). The latest Federal data available from the B-9 Fact Sheet 2—Special Issues During Pregnancy Estimating the number of infants who were exposed to substances in the prenatal period has been conducted in two primary ways: (1) collecting information about substance use from pregnant women or …

B-10 Table 1: Substance Use by Pregnant Women by Length of Gestation, and Estimated Number of Infants Exposed (2003-2004 annual average) Substance Used (past month) 1st Trimester 2nd Trimester 3rd Trimester Any Illicit Drug 8.0% women 327,440 infants 3.8% women 155,534 infants 2.4% women 98,232 infants Alcohol Use 22.2% women 908,646 infants 7.0% women 286,510 infants 4.9% women 200,557 infants Binge Alcohol Use 10.6% women 433,858 infants 1.9% women 77,767 infants 1.1% women 45,023 infants From the same NSDUH data set, cigarette use was reported by 18% of pregnant women. In contrast to other substance use, which declines as the pregnancy progresses, cigarette use by trimester went from 22.7% in the first trimester, down to 13.4% in the second trimester, and then increased to 18% in the third trimester (DHHS, 2005). Prior studies based on this annual survey have found similar rates of substance use. For example, Ebrahim and Gfroerer (2003) estimated that in 1998 there were 202,000 pregnancies exposed to illicit drugs, 1,203,000 pregnancies exposed to cigarettes, and 823,000 pregnancies exposed to alcohol. Rates of substance use among pregnant women also vary by age groups, with both past month illicit drug and alcohol use highest among teenagers. For instance, 16% of pregnant teens aged 15 to 17 reported past month illicit drug use, compared to 7.8% of those aged 18 to 25 and 2.1% of pregnant women aged 26 to 44. The trend was similar for alcohol use, though the differences were not quite as stark: 14.9% of pregnant teens aged 15 to 17 drank alcohol in the past month, compared to 10.6% of young women aged 18 to 25 and 11.3% of those aged 26 to 44. And, there was a similar trend among those reporting binge drinking, with 8.8% of pregnant teens 15 to 17 reporting binge drinking, compared to 5.1% of those 18 to 25 and 3.8% of those ages 26 to 44. And more than one-fourth (26%) of pregnant teens aged 15 to 17 and 28% of young women aged 18 to 25 reported past month cigarette use, compared to 11.7% of pregnant women aged 26 to 44 (DHHS, 2005). Table 2 summarizes these data

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