by Amy Spangler
October 13, 2010

When A Pregnant Woman Drinks So Does Her Baby. That’s the message the National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (NOFAS) wanted everyone to hear last month on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Awareness Day.

Described by NOFAS as “the leading known cause of mental retardation and birth defects,” fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) affect an estimated 0.2-2.0 babies per 1,000 live births—a surprising statistic given that FASD is 100 percent preventable. If fact, most health care providers would agree that alcohol passes readily from pregnant mom to unborn baby. But a no-use message has not been universally accepted, and there is even disagreement over what level of alcohol use, if any, during pregnancy is safe.

Rather than spreading a never-while-pregnant message, some health care providers and parents feel that alcohol education would benefit from a discussion of safe levels and whether light, moderate, and heavy drinking during pregnancy carry similar risks. Unfortunately, data on the use of alcohol during pregnancy is conflicting. A systematic review published in the BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology “found no convincing evidence of adverse effects of prenatal alcohol exposure at low-moderate levels of exposure.” But the evidence was so weak the reviewers could not conclude that low-moderate intake of alcohol during pregnancy is safe.

Conflicting messages in the health care industry have resulted in mixed feelings among women of childbearing age about the use of alcohol during pregnancy.

A survey of pregnant women and women who are trying to conceive found that:

• 10 percent of pregnant women reported using alcohol in the past 30 days (prior to the survey being taken) and 2 percent engaged in binge drinking.
• 54.9 percent of women who are trying to conceive reported using alcohol in the past 30 days and 12.4 percent engaged in binge drinking.

With almost 50 percent of U.S. pregnancies unplanned, the importance of educating all women of childbearing age about the risks of alcohol use during pregnancy and while trying to conceive cannot be overstated.

FASD are characterized by abnormal facial features, small head size, short stature, poor coordination, hyperactive behavior, learning disabilities, speech and language delays, low IQ, sleep and sucking problems, and vision and hearing problems. Given the effects of FASD, the prudent approach is for pregnant women (and those trying to conceive) to err on the side of caution and abstain from drinking alcohol altogether.

Unrealistic? The counter argument inevitably is that for generations women drank alcohol during pregnancy, smoked during pregnancy, ate unhealthy foods during pregnancy. And generations of people turned out OK. Changing social norms is no easy task. Women need to take it upon themselves to ensure that their babies have the best chance at a healthy life. Given the proven risks associated with alcohol use during pregnancy, and our inability to identify a level of use that is “safe,” parents need to know that even though less may be better than more, none is better than some.