Alcohol and Pregnancy
By: Tsou JinyeuTotal Views: 241, Word Count: 505,
During pregnancy a woman must abstain from drinking alcohol. Drinking alcohol during pregnancy will only pose risks for the fetus in several different ways. It isn’t clear as to how much alcohol can harm the baby, but no amount of alcohol is safe for the baby. Drinks such as wine, hard liquor and beer should be avoided completely during pregnancy.
Even if you avoid drinking alcohol for 6 days in the week and consume it on the weekend, it can still cause harm to your baby. When a woman consumes alcohol, it quickly gets into the baby’s bloodstream through the placenta. Pregnant women who drink about 5-6 glasses of alcohol a day put their baby at a high risk of developing Foetal Alcohol Syndrome. Baby’s who’ve been exposed to alcohol may suffer from Foetal Alcohol Syndrome.
Fetal alcohol syndrome is a condition where the fetus doesn’t grow normally. The new born baby may have malformations such as cleft palate, small eyes, under-developed arms, limbs, legs, facial distortions and other organs of the body. Babies can also have other birth defects such as hearing problems and vision problems. In more severe cases, the baby can have an under-developed brain or heart. Mental retardation is the most serious problems of Foetal Alcohol Syndrome. There is usually no treatment available for Foetal Alcohol Syndrome.
Drinking heavily during the first trimester can damage the baby’s developing organs like heart and kidneys. Once the vital organs of the baby are formed and if the mother continues drinking excessively, then the baby’s organs will not grow and develop properly.
The present guidelines for consuming alcohol for a pregnant woman in most countries advise that only a unit at max can be consumed. A unit of alcohol is measured either by a half pint of beer glass or cider, a small glass of wine or sherry or a measure of spirit.
A pregnant woman must remember that she is responsible for the life growing inside of her. So she should be more careful and cautious and just have to make certain lifestyle adjustments for the overall wellbeing of the baby. You must strop consuming alcohol on a daily basis. Getting drunk is not a good idea as it could harm the baby in a very serious way. You can take some once in a while, but not regularly.
For many women drinking alcohol is part of their social life and enjoyment. Therefore during pregnancy women find it hard to stop drinking alcohol, especially if they consumed alcohol regularly before they got pregnant. Some women may not be even aware that they are pregnant and therefore will continue to have alcohol until they get to know that they are pregnant. By then several weeks would have passed. Nevertheless the minute you get to know you are pregnant, do change your drinking habits for the benefit of the baby. Many women automatically find drinking alcohol repulsive during their pregnancy. This is caused due to the changing hormones in the body.
About the Author
Dr Tsou Jinyeu is a well known gynecologist and has been in this field since 1995. His special interests are – genetic and birth defects, high risk obstetrics, lupus in pregnancy, premature labour, premature delivery, triplets and ultrasound diagnosis. He is graduated from the University Of Illinois College Of Medicine. Nowdays he is working as a medical doctor at Elmhurst Loyola Center for Health.
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