Do You Drink Alcohol While Pregnant? Read This

Pregnancy and alcohol do not go together just like drinking and driving is ill-advised. Drinking while pregnant exposes the unborn baby to a condition called fetal alcohol syndrome. A 7 year old girl in England born with this condition, is suing her mother for drinking while pregnant.

According to reports, the mother who was 17 at the time, drank Vodka and beer on a regular basis, which resulted in the child developing fetal alcohol syndrome. But before the girl and her legal guardians can follow through with the suit, they must appeal a recent ruling in England that states, unborn children do not qualify as people. If a court deems the child as a person at the time of the act, then they can go forward with their case.




More on fetal alcohol syndrome

Using alcohol during pregnancy can cause the same risks as using alcohol in general. But it poses extra risks to the unborn baby. When a pregnant woman drinks alcohol, it easily passes across the placenta to the fetus. Because of this, drinking alcohol can harm the baby's development.

A pregnant woman who drinks any amount of alcohol is at risk for having a child with fetal alcohol syndrome. There is no "safe" level of alcohol use during pregnancy. Larger amounts of alcohol appear to increase the problems. Constant drinking is more harmful than drinking small amounts of alcohol.

Timing of alcohol use during pregnancy is also important. Drinking alcohol is likely most harmful during the first 3 months of pregnancy. But drinking alcohol any time during pregnancy can be harmful.

Symptoms

A baby with fetal alcohol syndrome may have the following symptoms:
Poor growth while the baby is in the womb and after birth
Decreased muscle tone and poor coordination
Delayed development and problems in three or more major areas: thinking, speech, movement, or social skills
Heart defects such as ventricular septal defect (VSD) or atrial septal defect (ASD)
Problems with the face, including narrow and small eyes with large epicanthal folds, small head, small upper jaw, smooth groove in upper lip, and smooth and thin upper lip