THE CHILDREN OF DRUG USERS

The increasing incidence of drug-addicted adults has resulted in a more visible group of children born of them. These children are the product of a special experience. Some have had intrauterine exposure to addictive drugs from the time of their conception. Many have had to experience withdrawal symptoms at birth. Nearly all have been exposed to their parents' use of drugs during the critical formative period of early life and have experienced some of the consequences of family deterioration and social disorder accompanying drug use. There has been a significant rise in the number of these children in recent years and many have been referred to child placement agencies for shortor long-term care away from their drug-using parents. Their need for placement has created a group with substantial social and clinical records extending over the major portion of their lives. This increase and the availability of clinical records prompted this review of such children being cared for by the Jewish Child Care Association of New York. Only known heroin addiction by the parents with dependence was considered for purposes of this review. It was recognized that most heroin addicts use many other drugs and that other kinds of chronic drug users may occasionally use heroin. Alcohol addiction, another serious problem of many parents of children in placement, was excluded from this survey. The Jewish Child Care Association of New York is a voluntary agency devoted to the care of children in need of placement. Its origins go back to the early 19th century with the care of orphans and