Latest figures have shown that NHS Lothian has recorded the most babies being born addicted to drugs.
The shocking statistics that were obtained by the Scottish Liberal Democrats show that since 2017, 850 babies in Scotland were born dependant on substances.
Of those, NHS Lothian recorded the most with 434, followed by Greater Glasgow and Clyde with 143 and Grampian with 118. NHS Western Isles did not report any cases and Fife and Shetland responded that they were unable to provide the information.
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The symptoms of NAS, caused by drugs passing from the mother to her foetus’ blood stream during pregnancy, include uncontrollable trembling, hyperactivity, blotchy skin and high-pitch crying.
After obtaining the figures, Scottish Liberal Democrats health spokesperson Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP said that new funding is needed for drug and alcohol services.
Mr Cole-Hamilton said: "There figures are utterly heartbreaking. It is hard to think of a worse possible start in life for a new-born baby to have to endure.
"In 2016, the Scottish Government slashed funding to drug and alcohol partnerships by more than 20%. Valuable local facilities shut their doors and expertise was lost which has proved hard to replace.
"Scotland now has its highest ever number of drug-related deaths. The Scottish Government has belatedly begun to repair that damage but there is so much more to do.
"It is time for radical action, not just to help people struggling with drug misuse today but for future generations too.
"That means investing in local services which are best placed to intervene to stop lives from being lost and new lives starting dependent on substances.
"Drug misuse should always be treated as a health issue, not a criminal justice matter. Anything else will condemn many more children to be born into these awful circumstances."
Scotland continues to have the worst overall drug death rate in Europe. From 2020-21, the country had a record number of drug deaths with 1,339 and statistics from the first half of 2021-22 saw 720 people die as a result of drugs, suggesting this year's final number could be as high as last year's.
