Early identification of FASD is critical for the well-being of individuals affected by prenatal alcohol exposure and their families. Early identification can maximize help in the treatment of FASD and in building supportive networks with other individuals and families impacted by FASD. This may be due, in part, to a lack of information about prenatal alcohol exposure or difficulty in distinguishing FASD from other developmental disorders that might have similar cognitive or behavioral symptoms. For example, this 2014 study looked at 1,303 pregnant women in the United Kingdom and their alcohol consumption before pregnancy and during all three trimesters. Results suggested that drinking — even fewer than two drinks per week — in the first trimester increased risk of complications, like lower birth weight and pre-term birth. Research shows that binge drinking and heavy drinking during pregnancy put a developing baby at the greatest risk for severe problems.4 However, even lesser amounts can cause harm.5,6 In fact, there is no known safe amount of alcohol consumption during pregnancy.
General Health
When you do find out you’re expecting, you’ll know to steer clear of alcohol for the rest of your pregnancy. Alcohol exposure before birth may harm one child more than another. You could have one child that is born healthy and another child born with problems.
- It can sometimes be difficult to diagnose a person with FASD because of the variety of symptoms and spectrum of severity.
- But this study only looked at short-term outcomes (not long-term effects that might not show up until childhood) and not fetal alcohol syndrome disorders (FASDs).
- It’s also difficult to predict the impact of drinking on any given pregnancy because some women have higher levels of the enzyme that breaks down alcohol.
- During the pandemic, people in the U.S. purchased markedly higher amounts of alcohol.
Professional development
Exposure to alcohol from all types of beverages–including beer wine, hard seltzer, hard cider, alcopops, distilled spirits (liquor), and mixed drinks–is unsafe for developing babies at every stage of pregnancy. A glass of wine, a can of beer, and a shot of liquor all have about the same amount of alcohol. Cocktails (mixed drinks) may have twice as much alcohol as these other beverages. During the first three months of pregnancy, important stages of development happen with the face and organs such as the heart, bones, brain and nerves. Drinking alcohol during this time can cause damage to how body parts develop.
How does alcohol affect my unborn baby?
- However, people can avoid it by abstaining from alcohol during pregnancy.
- Copyright 2024 by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
- CDC works with partners across the country to address alcohol and other substance use during pregnancy and FASDs.
- Previous research suggests that policies targeting prenatal alcohol consumption could benefit from adopting non-punitive strategies that prioritize education, access to healthcare, and equitable treatment.
I assure them there is little evidence to suggest that they harmed their pregnancy. In male embryos, the regulation of growth-related genes was more affected, corroborating data showing that males are more vulnerable to growth retardation after preimplantation exposure to alcohol. For a long time, it was thought that exposure to alcohol during the preimplantation phase, when the fertilized oocyte goes from a single-cell to an embryo of a hundred or so cells, had no effect on the unborn baby, provided the embryo succeeded in implanting in the uterus. So if you drank alcohol before you realized you were pregnant, the important thing is that you stop now. Numerous reliable sources and alcohol during pregnancy studies (like the one we mentioned above) mention that alcohol use in the first trimester may increase miscarriage risk. It’s an incredibly difficult reality that miscarriages are as common as they are.
And this research published in 2012 suggested that even light drinking in the early weeks could increase miscarriage risk, though the risk goes up with heavier drinking. The results suggested that early alcohol exposure can alter DNA chemical processes. Embryonic stem cells that change as a result of the mother’s alcohol consumption early in pregnancy could even impact adult tissue later on. Surgeon General, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the American Academy of Pediatrics advise pregnant women not to drink alcohol at all.
- I also use this opportunity to discuss how much they normally drink and to educate them about the risks of drinking during pregnancy.
- If you adopted a child or are providing foster care, you may not know if the biological mother drank alcohol while pregnant.
- It is difficult to diagnose FASD because there is no biological test and other disorders such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and Williams syndrome have similar symptoms.
- A permanent condition, fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) happens when a person consumes any amount of alcohol during a pregnancy.
If you are pregnant or trying to get pregnant and cannot stop drinking, get help! Contact your healthcare provider, local Alcoholics Anonymous, or local alcohol treatment center. We obtained individual data on drinking during the last 3 months of pregnancy from the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS). PRAMS was created in 1987 as part of an initiative by the CDC to collect population-based data on the health of mothers and infants around the US8.
It is conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. This follows the advice of most health organizations focused on pregnancy, such as the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. There have been a number of publicized statements on alcohol use and pregnancy in the past year. A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
Getting help to stop drinking alcohol
FAS disorder spectrum and other adverse fetal effects secondary to maternal alcohol consumption prenatal alcohol exposure will continue to be a substantial public health concern and afflict future generations without successful prevention, intervention, and management. The times before, during and after pregnancy are all critical periods for maternal alcohol consumption awareness, reduction, and ideally abstinence. An increased awareness among the general public and health care providers combined with effective universal prevention strategies and improved guidelines for the detection, prevention, and management of FASD, are important measures in addressing this ongoing concern. Although preconception alcohol cessation is preferred, this recommendation is unavailable to at least 30% to 50% of women whom pregnancies are unplanned.10 Pregnancy is a unique time when women are motivated to adopt healthy behaviors that may potentially benefit their child.
