Alcohol and Pregnancy

What kind of harm can alcohol do to unborn baby? A woman who drinks alcohol during pregnancy risks giving birth to an abnormal child with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). A child born with FAS has a pattern of mental and physical defects. Growth deficiency is one of the most common physical defects of FAS. Most infants with FAS weigh less and are shorter than normal infants. The head size is smaller than normal too. These youngsters never catch up to normal growth and will always be smaller than other children of the same age. FAS babies may have malformed faces. They have narrow eyes, low nasal bridges, short upturned noses and thin upper lips. Many of these babies also have heart and joint abnormalities. Mental retardation is the most serious mental defect associated with FAS. In Seattle, Washington where much of the research on FAS has taken place, FAS has been reported to be the third most frequently recognized disorder involving retardation. It seems that intellectual development is related to physical malformation - the most severely malformed children also have the greatest intellectual handicap. Many FAS children are poorly coordinated and have short attention spans and behavioral problems. None of these defects corrects itself as the child grows older. If You drink, baby also drinks If you are pregnant and take a drink, a glass of wine, a beer or a cocktail. Your unborn child takes the same drink. Whatever you eat or drink while pregnant goes directly through your bloodstream into the placenta. For the unborn child, the alcohol interferes with his ability to get enough oxygen and nourishment for normal cell development in the brain and other body organs. Research has shown that a developing fetus has very little tolerance for alcohol and infants born to mothers who drink during pregnancy can have serious problems. How much alcohol is too much during pregnancy? No level of drinking has been proven safe.Researchers are taking a closer look at the more subtle effects of moderate and light drinking during pregnancy. A 2001 study by researchers at Wayne State University in Detroit found that 6- and 7-year-old children of mothers who had as little as one drink a week during pregnancy were more likely than children of non-drinkers to have behavior problems, such as aggressive and delinquent behaviors. These researchers found that children whose mothers drank any alcohol during pregnancy were more than three times as likely as unexposed children to demonstrate delinquent behaviors. Researchers at the University of Washington at Seattle followed to age 14 a group of middle-class children whose mothers were “social drinkers,” who drank an average of about two drinks per day. At age 7 years, when given intelligence tests, these children scored seven points lower than the average for all children in the study. At age 14, alcohol-exposed children remained more likely to have learning problems, especially with mathematics and memory, and behavioral difficulties, including attention problems. Other researchers also have reported behavioral problems in alcohol-exposed children including hyperactivity, impulsivity, poor social and communication skills and alcohol and drug use Is occasional drinking safe? Researchers don't know what a few drinks over a short period early in pregnancy can do to a developing child. But the experts argue that caution is the wisest course, so once you know you're pregnant, it's best to cut down to the amounts recommended above. It may be better yet to give up drinking before getting pregnant. But if you didn't, try not to worry. Thousands of women have had a drink or two before they knew they were pregnant and their babies have been fine. What can I drink instead? Avoiding or cutting down on alcohol may be easy if, like many women, you develop a dislike for it early in your pregnancy. But if you tend to use alcohol to unwind, giving it up may require more effort. Try experimenting by replacing a glass of beer or wine with other stress-reducing pleasures such as a warm bath, soft music, a massage, exercise, or reading. If you miss the ritual of drinking, try replacing that Bloody Mary with a virgin variety, or switch to a non-alcoholic beer or wine during your evening meal. If your partner enjoys a drink after work, consider asking him to abstain for a time so you won't feel deprived. Potential problems of taking alcohol during pregnancy Small body size and weight Slower than normal development and failure to "catch up." Deformed ribs and sternum Curved spine and hip dislocations Bent, fused, webbed, or missing fingers or toes Limited movement of joints Small head Facial abnormalities Small eye openings Skin webbing between eyes and base of nose Drooping eyelids Nearsightedness Failure of eyes to move in same direction Short upturned nose Sunken nasal bridge Flat or absent groove between nose and upper lip Thin upper lip Opening in roof of mouth Small jaw Low-set or poorly formed ears Organ deformities Heart defects or heart murmurs Genital malformations Kidney and urinary defects Central nervous system handicaps Small brain Faulty arrangement of brain cells and connective tissue Mental retardation -- occasionally severe Learning disabilities Short attention span Irritability in infancy Hyperactivity in childhood Poor body, hand, and finger coordination