Alcohol in pregnancy

alcohol-in-pregnancy

Alcohol is harmful to the unborn child during pregnancy – with this knowledge, almost everyone grows up and you will have heard it often during your own pregnancy. The social acceptance of a small drink, however, is surprisingly high even with baby bump and that although a small amount can already have serious consequences.

Is alcohol socially accepted during pregnancy?

Even though the consumption of alcohol in pregnancy is commonly accepted by society, even a small amount can have serious consequences. A baby who has been exposed to alcohol in the mother’s womb can not only sustain physical but also mental damage during this time. What levels of alcohol in pregnancy trigger what type of developmental disorder and how much is needed to cause any harm, is not known.Just for this reason, a majority of women still drink alcohol during the ball time. The risk is simply underestimated because there is no exact medical data and there is still a misconception in society that small amounts can not be harmful in any case. 

Do you have to completely abstain from alcohol during pregnancy?

Whether you completely abstain from alcohol in pregnancy is of course up to you. In any case, doctors recommend a complete abstinence during the entire pregnancy. This is mainly due to the fact that no exact quantity is known, from the alcohol acts harmful. Although some studies suggest that small amounts do not have any consequences, and some women may approve some glass for that reason, you should be careful. Whether or not alcohol affects your baby is dependent on many factors, and while a glass of wine a week is possible for a pregnant woman with no consequences, this does not mean that it applies equally to any other pregnant woman. Especially in early pregnancy and regular use, the consequences are simply unpredictable, so it is advisable that you completely abstain from alcohol in pregnancy.

What do you have to consider if you do not want to give up alcohol during pregnancy?

While it is strongly advised that you completely abstain from alcohol during pregnancy, this is not always easy for some women for a variety of reasons. Although you should of course think of your baby, there is of course no law that prohibits the consumption of alcohol. However, if you want to drink alcohol during your pregnancy, you should still pay attention to some things to keep the risk as low as possible.So you should drink in no case in a intoxication or even be cheered. Any form of alcohol consumption that you can already feel has been proven to be harmful to your child as well. The occasional bumping on birthdays, however, is classified by some doctors as largely harmless. However, you should never drink more than half a bottle of beer or a glass of wine a week. In addition, you should make sure that you renounced before the 12th week definitely alcohol in pregnancy. From this point on, the organ formation of your little one is completed and serious developmental damage in this area are at least excluded. Note, however, that even after the 12th Week of pregnancy may still cause disturbances in the cognitive area and in the central nervous system. To be sure that your child does not suffer any damage, you can never be so even with careful alcohol consumption during pregnancy.

Alcohol in pregnancy, before you know about the pregnancy

If you have a desire to have a child and are working towards a pregnancy, it is only logical that you completely abstain from alcohol. Of course, it can also be that you unexpectedly pregnant. If you had drunk alcohol during this time – the first four weeks – because you did not know about your pregnancy, you can not be worried. In the first weeks of pregnancy, the all-or-nothing principle applies. This means that any serious damage that occurs during this time can either be repaired by other cells or a miscarriage occurs. So you do not need to worry about having something wrong with your child later on, if you drank alcohol very early in your pregnancy.The critical phase starts at the 5th week and continues until the 12th week. During this time, the organs of the embryo form. Alcohol consumption during these months can cause serious developmental damage.

Consequences of alcohol in pregnancy – Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)

If you consume alcohol during pregnancy, the consequences for your child can be devastating. Innumerable physical and mental disturbances can occur, whereby usually never all symptoms occur equally, but always only a certain quantity with a child. Which these are and how strong they are pronounced, is not foreseeable in advance. Some of the disorders that can be caused by alcohol during pregnancy are stunted growth, small-headedness, formation of a third lung, speech disorders, heart defects, cleft palates, mental retardation, epilepsy, coordination difficulties and self-injurious behavior. However, this is just a small excerpt of the long list of consequences alcohol can have for an unborn child.

Alcohol in pregnancy is still a controversial topic. This is mainly due to the lack of definitive studies that could provide information on the levels of alcohol that are harmful to the unborn child. If you want to be on the safe side and want to avoid giving birth to your baby with a fetal alcohol syndrome, you should completely abstain from alcohol during pregnancy.