Did you know that one of out over 33 babies born in the United States is born with a birth defect? Birth defects are also the number one cause for infant mortality. Birth defects happen when a baby is developing in a mother's body, usually within the first 3 months of pregnancy. While the cause of most birth defects is unknown, some birth defects can be caused by exposures to medicines or chemicals, such as alcohol or nicotine.

Fortunately, step are being taken to try to reduce the number of birth defects in the United States. In 1998, Congress passed the Birth Defects Prevention Act which authorized the Center of Disease Control to collect and analyze available medical data on birth defects and operate regional centers for applied epidemiologic research on the prevention of birth defects. Also, the well known charity organization 'March of Dimes', who's campaign against polio lead to the implementation of a cure several years ago, continues it's 60 plus years of fighting and preventing birth defects. They hope that since polio is now near extinction across most of the world, that one day all birth defects will soon follow.