There have been many articles written about the
consumption of alcohol during pregnancy. And there have many debates and
researches that referred to this issue.
Some experts say moderate drinking during pregnancy is
okay, but there are others who believe taking even one drink is like very dangerous
for the baby's health.
The thing that is not debatable is that whatever women
eat or drink while pregnant goes directly through your bloodstream into the
placenta so literally if a pregnant woman takes a drink -- a glass of wine, a beer or a cocktail -- the
unborn child takes the same.
For the unborn child, the alcohol interferes with his
ability to get enough oxygen and nourishment for normal cell development in the
brain and other body organs. Research has shown that a developing foetus has
very little tolerance for alcohol and infants born to mothers who drink during
pregnancy can have serious problems. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is a pattern
of mental and physical defects which develops in some unborn babies when the
mother drinks "too much" alcohol during pregnancy. A baby born with
FAS, or even with the lesser Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAE), can have serious
handicaps and therefore could require a lifetime of special care. There is even
some research that indicates that women who plan to get pregnant should stop drinking before they even
conceive.
The debate raised by the Department of Health is about
how much is “too much" because until now it was said that the only safe limit is
no alcohol at all. The Department of Health said that pregnant women and those
hoping to conceive can safely drink up to two glasses of wine a week without
harming the foetus.
Dr Raja Mukherjee, an expert on the disorder who works
at St George's hospital medical school in Tooting, London, called for pregnant
women to cut out alcohol completely, and said the UK's binge drinking habits
were of particular concern: "There is an increasing literature of
evidence, however, to suggest that binge drinking as well as low doses of
alcohol can cause damage."
The Department of Health said the research cited at
the conference had been reviewed in March as part of the government's alcohol
harm reduction strategy, and that the two units a week limit was considered to be
safe.
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