There's considerable confusion about the risks (or not) of drinking alcohol during pregnancy. What's the limit, really?
“Have a drink, it will relax you! Let’s have some champagne to celebrate your pregnancy. One drink won’t hurt and it will cheer you up! Come on, it’s a celebration, a drink won’t harm you.”
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You’ve all heard this sort of invitation and advice, and probably thought that having the odd drink at special moments during your pregnancy won’t make any difference to your baby. Well, apparently, think again.
1. Effects of alcohol on the unborn baby
Drinking any kind of alcohol during any stage of pregnancy has consequences, though these vary from mild to severe. Basically, the issue is that when the mother drinks, the baby drinks too.
Amongst potential risks:
Greater risk of miscarriage or premature delivery
The unborn baby’s body cells can get damaged which could lead to a lower birth weight, and one or more deformities
The brain cells of the developing baby can be damaged by alcohol and your baby can be born with mild to severe brain damage, a mental handicap or minimal brain dysfunction, such as dyslexia, autism or hyperactivity
In cases where the mother-to-be drinks heavily, especially during the first three months of pregnancy, the following severe damage occurs (a condition called "foetal alcohol syndrome"):
Mental handicap or retardation
Heart defects
Low birth weight and size
Small head
Distinctive facial features, such as a flat upper lip, small eyes and chin, and low-set ears
If you are pregnant and have six glasses of spirits (90 ml of absolute alcohol) a day, your baby is exposed to a 50% risk of being born with foetal alcohol syndrome. FAS is probably the most common single cause of mental handicap. But it is also the most preventable disorder. You can prevent damage by simply avoiding alcohol during the entire pregnancy.
2. When is your baby exposed to greatest risk?
Though there's risk throughout pregnancy, the first trimester is when the baby's brain, spinal cord, heart and liver start to develop. It is a time of active cell division and the cells are particularly sensitive to the effects of alcohol and other negative factors, including poor diet, medicines (prescribed and over-the-counter) and smoking.
Be very careful during these vital three months - don’t drink alcohol, smoke or take medicines (not even a headache pill), and ensure that your diet is balanced.
Alcohol can also have highly negative effects during the last two trimesters of pregnancy (from the 3rd to the 9th month). During this period the unborn baby grows rapidly and alcohol can adversely affect its growth, causing low birth weight and retarded early development.
And what about the time before you fall pregnant? The best thing to do if you are planning to fall pregnant is to stop drinking immediately and abstain until well after the baby’s birth. This will give your baby the best possible chance to avoid damage caused by alcohol.
3. Should alcoholic drinks carry a health warning?
In my opinion all alcoholic drinks and products that contain alcohol, such as certain tonics, should carry a health warning “Do not drink alcohol during pregnancy", or "Drinking alcohol during pregnancy can do irreparable harm to your unborn baby”.
We are constantly being warned against drinking and driving. Nowadays alcoholic drinks carry a warning that these products should not be sold to minors. These are excellent campaigns, which help to alert the public about the dangers of causing road accidents while under the influence, and the very real danger of exposing teenagers to alcohol abuse. But no mention is made of unborn children who are even less able to protect themselves.
A campaign which warns mothers not to drink immediately before, during and after pregnancy (while breast-feeding), is called for. A great deal of misery could be spared if all mothers could be made aware of the risks they are exposing their unborn babies to when they have a drink.
So if you are planning to fall pregnant, stop drinking well in advance. While you are pregnant and breast-feeding, have plenty of healthy drinks like fruit juice, milk and water.
And when you toast your pregnancy, ask for a glass of sparkling grape or apple juice. Only then will the toast, “good health”, also apply to your unborn baby.
Please - no one is sure how much alcohol it takes to damage an unborn baby, and of course it is better to err on the side of caution. However, there is absolutely no conclusive evidence that a very occasional small amount of alcohol during pregnancy will harm your child, and articles like this one just serve to propagate medical myths. - Bee
PS
2008/09/16 07:00:37 PM
I am not saying Foetal Alcohol Syndrome is a myth (as suggested by the heading leading to this article) - I am saying that it is caused by severe alcohol abuse during pregnancy, not by an occasional drink. - Bee
Avoid all alcohol
2008/09/16 09:31:57 PM
What the studies are showing (as was mentioned in this article) is that even small amounts of alcohol are resulting in an increasing incidence of problems like ADHD and learning difficulties etc.. In my opinion as an obstetrician it would be absolutely irresponsible to say to any of my patients that any alcohol at all is ok. - Dr Jones
What do you mean..
2008/09/17 01:28:09 AM
not even a headache pill??? - Confused
True or False?
2008/09/17 07:01:20 AM
My friend said that her gynecologist indicated that she may have four glasses of wine a week. I find this very difficult to believe. Would a gyne say something like this? She' s now about five months and drinks BIG glasses of wine. - Lee
...Bee?
2008/09/17 07:47:22 AM
It doesn' t matter weather or not we know for sure that alcohol causes problems for an unborn child or not, but it is the duty of every mother to give her child the best chance at life and if there is even the smallest risk to your child you should stop doing what might cause damage to him. Simple as that! - sd
@ BEEE
2008/09/17 08:00:48 AM
Drink on we will make an experiment with your kid, please don be irresponsible in drink while pregnant. i know people who thought where clever like yourself who tested this " medical myth" as you put it, and their children and themselves are suffering till this day. Alcohol and pregnancy is a no no. - shaka zulu
Drinking
2008/09/17 08:02:17 AM
Alcohol should most definitely have warnings on their bottles regarding drinking in pregancy, as it is equally dangerous as smoking - dee
Mother-to-be
2008/09/17 08:20:22 AM
If you can have the best for your baby, why give it second best!! Eat healthy, live healthy and have a healthy happy baby.That child deserves the best, it starts with you, the mother! - Irene
@ Bee
2008/09/17 09:29:59 AM
That' s right, we don' t know how much alcohol it takes to cause FAS. Do you really want to take that chance? If you can' t stop drinking during pregnancy then you don' t deserve to have a baby... - hdc
Bee - did your mother drink during pregnancy?
2008/09/17 09:52:13 AM
Irresponsible opinions like your own can only be uttered by a person whose mother drank (even a small amount) during pregnancy - Hendrik
@ BEE
2008/09/17 09:53:52 AM
You' re an idiot and just for the record I' m going to write your comments off due to a result of a lack of education and a sound mind!The reason that there is no conclusive proof as to the exact amount of alcohol it takes to cause FAS is due to the fact that a baby' s reaction to alcohol is unique in each case and dependant on the fetus' s cells sensitivity to alcohol. So for one baby it might take only 3 units while another much more! I would love to see you say your comments to a sufferer of FAS - George
Permanent Brain Damage
2008/09/17 10:17:43 AM
No confusion - only mixed messages. Only one drink during pregnancy can cause permanent brain damage. FAS is real. SA has the hi - 12% and it is NO YOKE ! FAE or partial Fetal Alcohol Syndrome' s prevalence rate is 5 times more than the FAS rate. FASfacts is a NGO focusing on the prevention of FAS, of which CRIME and AIDS are serious consequences. FAS and FAE are masked as ADT is most cases. Please visit our website : www.fasfacts.org.za and get real. - FASfacts
@Bee
2008/09/17 11:20:29 AM
Actually the research does indicate that even a small amount of alcohol can impair an unborn child. Obviously the more alcohol consumed, the worse the problem, and although 1 or 2 drinks over the course of the pregnancy will likely do absolutely no harm, why take the risk. Its a bit like not wearing your seatbelt because you are just driving a short distance. - L Savage
HHM+HHB=HHL
2008/09/17 01:11:07 PM
Happy Healthy Mom + Happy Healthy Baby = Happy Healthy Life. So why mess with the happy winning formular by adding alcohol to it. To all mommys to be out there, stay away from alcohol and do what' s best for your babies. Live a Happy Healthy Life! - Thobi Mofokeng
Don' t drink period!
2008/09/17 03:00:59 PM
Planning on having a baby, pregnant already, just given birth? DON' T DRINK.... Its bad for you in every single way. We all know what alcohol does to you. Even just one glass, so imagine what it does to your unborn or born (in the case of breastfeeding) baby.... I know of people that get tipsy on a half a glass of wine, now imagine how tipsy/tarty your child will be. - Sads
pain killers
2008/09/18 09:17:05 AM
Im a mom to be for the first time, Im going onto my 11th week, so still early days... I took 2 panados a week ago as i had a serious head ache... i read now that you must stay away from pain killers... is this true? - Jax
effect or not?
2008/09/25 09:28:59 AM
I have always been drinking alcohol, especially over weekends. I realise now that I may be pregnant. If i am, i may be about 2 weeks pregnant. Would this have an effect on my unborned child? I am very paranoid especially after reading the article and the comments. - Tamryn
danger of FAS?
2008/10/01 03:42:07 PM
i am 6 months pregnant and have been drunk quite alot in my pregnancy, been steaming once or twice, i am getting very worried now and am going to stop completely i am young and was unable to stop, if i stop now for the last three months will my baby return to normal? at my 5 month scan my baby was perfectly fine, is he in danger of having FAS ? - help please?
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