Recent trends suggesting that pregnant women can drink small amounts of alcohol may soon be sputtering to an end, with a new study finding that the women who do indulge in the odd tipple are more likely to give birth to underweight or preemie babies.
More than just two units of alcohol per week in the first trimester - equivalent to a can of full-strength beer - were found to be enough to prompt birth complications. The study, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, was conducted by British researchers who surveyed the alcohol consumption habits of 1,264 women both prior to conception and during pregnancy. The women were participants in the Caffeine and Reproductive Health study, and all at low risk of birth complications. The survey asked respondents to provide information on the dietary habits, including, of course, alcohol intake.
Contrary to the recommendations of the British Department of Health, which suggests no more than one to two units of alcohol per week, more than 53 percent of participants drank more than two units per week. In America, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warns pregnant women off alcohol altogether.
It was then found that 13 percent of the babies born during the study were underweight at the time of birth, while 4.4 percent fell into the 'low birth weight' range. Premature babies accounted for 4.3 percent of the births. On average, alcohol consumption over the recommended amount during the first trimester was found to be linked a 100 gram reduction in birth weight. "This is further evidence that even moderate amounts of alcohol are toxic to the growing fetus and direct toxicity is further worsened by the increased complications of premature birth," said Professor Andrew Whitelaw of the University of Bristol, who was not affiliated with the study. "As 38% of the women admitted risky drinking (over 10 units/week) before pregnancy and pregnancy is sometimes discovered late, the advice has to be to avoid alcohol completely when trying to conceive."
The survey also found that women typically drank 11.2 units of alcohol in the months preceding the pregnancy, and four units per week during the first three months with child. The women who drank more were also found to be more affluent, older, and tertiary educated.
