Is Drinking During Pregnancy Harmful?
Researches show that occasional drinking during pregnancy really doesn’t affect the normal pregnancy cycle nor does it result in premature births. Here occasional drinking is defined as women consuming one or two drinks per day. Even if nothing is reported against light or moderate drinking during pregnancy medically the best practice will be to abstain from drinking during pregnancy.
Over the decades number of articles has been published about the impact of drinking during pregnancy. Actually speaking we must by now be in a position to understand the impact of it and provide conclusive proof against drinking whether occasional or otherwise during pregnancy. The situation is a little different in the sense that, inspite of all this, till date there are no medically proven evidences which says occasional drinking during pregnancy has harmful impact over the fetus during pregnancy.
Again the impact of drinking could significantly vary depending upon what is the measure of occasional and light drinking, as it differs from person to person.
Americans and their Alcoholic History
Drinking was a norm in early American days. Everyone drank, our fore fathers and mothers drank more alcohol than what we do. In the early 1800’s women drinkers where around 100,000, drinking almost 1/3rd of national liquor. It is indeed hard to believe the point that all of us in some way have been exposed to alcohol and its harmful effects but still not in a position to provide evidence relating to its impact.
Have concern for your child – Abstain from Drinking during Pregnancy
Of course as researches one intends to collect information from concerned individuals about their drinking habits and the impact they have faced owing to alcohol consumption. It is important to remember that people who consume alcohol especially in very high quantities often tend to lie about their consumption.
The measure of alcohol consumption varies from person to person and from one research article to another. While some of them consider drinking twice a day light and occasional, you will have someone else defining 3 or 4 drinks a day to be occasional drinking habit.
If you are someone who will go by such articles, beware!! Consumption of alcohol results in your fetus encountering birth defects. Of course alcohol is just one of the many possible risk factors. There are a number of risk factors such as smoking, maternal illness, pregnancy complications, past health history, drugs and environment pollution that could very well result in a health issue.
It is better to abstain than to risk your child’s life and future. Heavy drinkers put their children to various physical and mental deformities which is far more dangerous than child abuse.
Probable Health Issues – Alcohol Consumption During Pregnancy
Alcohol consumption during pregnancy is a sure shot risk. Though there are no evidences to prove the same considering the fact that the substance is the cause for all birth defects there is no point in risking one’s life and that of a child. Considering the issue pertaining to drinking during pregnancy cases, given below are the possible health hazards one might possibly face.
- Spontaneous abortion among women who take at least 1 or 2 drinks a day.
- Frequent drinks result in lower birth weight of the new born.
- Possible brain damage among children whose mother is alcohol dependent woman.
- Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) – A serious health problem where the child is subject to various birth defects as a result of alcohol consumption by his/her mother. It is clear that it is completely preventable. A child suffering from FAS is normally shorter than others, weighs less, abnormal facial features, smaller head circumference, poor coordination and short memory.
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