Is alcohol okay during pregnancy? Even though accurate figures may be difficult to come by. Let’s start with scientific facts. There is no known safe amount of alcohol use during pregnancy or while trying to get pregnant.
There are various brands and types of alcohol, starting from wine to whiskey. one thing is that they have a similar chemical structure and they affect the baby and you the same way . The effects of alcohol in pregnancy are completely preventable by simply not drinking, so why take the risk?
When you drink, alcohol passes from your blood through the placenta to the baby.
The developing baby’s liver remains immature and unable to break down alcohol in the same way as an adult. Thus continued alcohol exposure will seriously affect your baby’s development due to the various toxic compounds that are formed. Damaging effects of alcohol are most harmful in the first three months of pregnancy, and alcohol intake is linked with miscarriages and birth defects.
When you drink, alcohol passes from your blood through the placenta to the baby.
It doesn’t get any safer as the pregnancy advances. There is an ongoing risk of premature births, low birth weights, and even stillbirths (when a baby dies before birth). A whole range of lifelong physical, behavioral and intellectual disabilities may also result from alcohol intake. The combination of the many problems that can occur to the baby is aptly described as fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). You don’t want your baby to have any of these.
So what’s the way forward?
The safest option for you is to avoid alcoholic drinks altogether for the entire pregnancy. It may not be as difficult as you might think, many women cannot stand the taste of alcohol during pregnancy anyway.
Should you experience difficulties in cutting down your drinking during pregnancy, remember you can always seek help. Talk to your midwife or obstetrician. It’s never too late to stop. The sooner you stop drinking during pregnancy, the better it will be for your own health, and your unborn baby’s health too.
If you would like to learn more about the risk factors of taking alcohol during pregnancy, join a free trial of our pregnancy support program and talk to a medical expert today.
