system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: Why doesn't smoking, drinking or doing other drugs while pregnant qualify as child abuse or neglect?

I'm in Canada BTW, but if anyone can answer it'd be cool. I just don't get why a mother would get to keep her child or not be forced to get treatment if she's knowingly endangering her unborn child's life or wellbeing.
gpt
Because a fetus is not considered a being until birth.

After birth though, the child can be taken in if it can be proven that the mother knowingly endangered the life of the unborn child.

You can lose custody if your habits cause extreme damage to the child. But at the same time, medical professionals recognize that the withdrawals from not smoking, drinking, etc for months can have an equally dangerous impact on the child, and most have alternatives to reduce the risk to the child to a manageable level.