Mental Retardation

***This is volume 4 of 4 only*** Why a second edition of the "Encyclopedia of drugs and alcohol?" And why change the name to the "Encyclopedia of drugs, alcohol, and addictive behavior?" Consider a smattering of statistics: in 1999, 10.3 million people (4.7% of the American population) ages 12 years or older were dependent on illicit drugs or alcohol; in 1998, it was estimated that approximately 19,000 alcohol induced deaths occur annually in the United States; in 1993, it was reported that 13,984 people were killed in alcohol-related motor vehicle accidents; 3,765 of these individuals had not been drinking themselves; in 1998 16,926 deaths were attributed to drug-induced causes…

In the tradition of David Pelzer's A Child Called 'It' comes the unsettling story of a mute, almost catatonic seven–year–old and the special education teacher who tries to save her from the silence and abuse of her world.

Alcohol and other drugs of abuse cause significant physi­ ological changes, especially during development. The effects on the infant and child range from severe mental retardation to mild changes in activity and neurological functions.