What are the hazards of drinking alcohol during pregnancy?
In general, alcohol-related birth defects are more likely to result from drinking during the first trimester, while growth problems are more likely
to result from drinking in the third trimester. However, drinking at any stage of pregnancy can affect the brain.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), each year between 1,300 and 8,000 babies in the United States are born with fetal alcohol syndrome
(FAS), a combination of physical and mental birth defects. FAS occurs in about 6 percent of the babies born to women who are alcoholics or chronic alcohol abusers.
The effects of FAS last a lifetime. Even if not mentally retarded, adolescents and adults with FAS have varying degrees of psychological and behavioral problems
and often find it difficult to hold down a job and live independently.
During pregnancy, how much alcohol is too much?
No level of drinking has been proven safe. The full pattern of FAS usually occurs in offspring of chronic alcohol abusers, most often in women who drink four to five or more drinks daily. However, it has
occurred in women who drink less.
If a pregnant woman has one or two drinks before she realizes she is pregnant, can it harm the baby?
If you drank alcohol before you knew you were pregnant, stop drinking now. You will feel better and your baby will have a good chance to be born healthy. If you want to get pregnant,
do not drink alcohol. You may not know you are pregnant right away. Alcohol can hurt a baby even when you are only 1 or 2 months pregnant. Because no amount of alcohol is proven safe, a woman
should stop drinking immediately if she even suspects she could be pregnant, and she should abstain from all alcohol if attempting to become pregnant.
How can I stop drinking?
There are many ways to help yourself stop drinking. You do not have to drink when other people drink. If someone gives you a drink, it is OK say no. Stay away from people or places that
make you drink. Do not keep alcohol at home. If you need help you can talk with your health care provider, local hospital social worker, or contact a local Alcohol
Anonymous group.
What other problems can drinking alcohol during pregnancy cause?
Consuming alcohol during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage, low birth weight and stillbirth. Heavy drinkers are two to four times more likely to have a miscarriage between the fourth and sixth
months of pregnancy than are nondrinkers. A recent Danish study found that women who drank five or more drinks a week were three times more likely to have a stillborn baby than women who had fewer than
one drink a week.
Is it safe to drink alcohol while breastfeeding?
Small amounts of alcohol do get into breast milk and are passed on to the baby. One study found that the breast fed babies of women who had one or more drinks a day were a little slower in acquiring motor
skills (such as crawling and walking) than babies who had not been exposed to alcohol. Large amounts of alcohol may also interfere with ejection of milk from the breast. For these reasons, the March of
Dimes recommends that women abstain from alcohol while they are nursing.
Can heavy drinking by the father contribute to FAS?
To date, there is no proof that heavy drinking by the father can cause FAS. There is, however, increasing evidence that heavy alcohol use by the male can lower the level of the male hormone testosterone,
leading to low sperm counts and, occasionally, to infertility. Men who stop drinking during their partner's pregnancy also help the partner avoid alcohol.
|