Drinking Alcohol during pregnancy
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Most women find out they are pregnant and quit drinking alcohol all together until they deliver. Then, there are other women who drink throughout their pregnancy. Some drink lightly, others moderately, and still more heavily. However, is it ok to drink during pregnancy? What are the side effects of drinking during pregnancy? And, what about those few drinks you had before you knew you were pregnant? All of your questions will be answered so keep reading.
Basically, it is not known how much alcohol will harm a fetus however it is definitely recognized that alcohol can cause physical and mental damage to the unborn fetus. Since it is not known at what level of consumption alcohol causes these damages or if it is different for every woman and fetus. Because of this it is highly recommended that pregnant women do not drink during pregnancy.
Women who are attempting to become pregnant should also avoid all alcohol. The reason why is because you never know when you might become pregnant and drinking at this early stage could have devastating consequences. Additionally, drinking might make it more difficult to conceive in the first place so it is just not a good idea.
However, dont get too worried if you were one of those women who found out they were pregnant but had drank several alcoholic beverages before you knew. Most research shows that a couple of beers or liquor drinks during early pregnancy will not cause harmful results as long as the mom-to-be stops drinking immediately upon finding out she is pregnant.
While nobody knows how much alcohol affects the fetus one thing is known and that is the more a woman drinks during her pregnancy the higher the chance the child will have fetal alcohol syndrome or other abnormalities. Binge drinking and frequent drinking are the biggest culprits when it comes to alcohol damage to the fetus. Alcohol stays in the babys system longer than it stays in moms system and it is broken down slower as well, which means the baby has a higher chance of lifelong damage the more the mom drinks.
You should avoid drinking alcohol at all costs during your pregnancy in order to give your little one the best chance possible at a healthy start in life. However, if you did have a few drinks before finding out try not to worry too much. Just stop drinking and stay healthy for the rest of your pregnancy.
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