Drinking alcohol during pregnancy is dangerous and there is no known safe amount. The effects of alcohol during pregnancy are also well known. When you drink alcohol, so does your child, because alcohol passes through the placenta. Alcohol affects developing babies during all stages of pregnancy so it’s important to quit drinking immediately when you learn you’re pregnant and avoid all alcohol for the duration.
The Effects of Alcohol During Pregnancy: How Your Baby is Affected
Alcohol quickly enters the bloodstream, passes through the placenta and reaches your developing baby. Because they break down alcohol slower than you they usually end up with higher levels. This endangers your baby in many ways. It increases the risk of stillbirth and miscarriage and increases the odds that your child will have developmental, neurological and learning problems. Children born to drinking mothers also commonly display aggressive behavior as they get older.
The Effects of Alcohol During Pregnancy: Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
Fetal alcohol syndrome disorders (FASD) is a medical term that’s used to describe the many problems babies experience after exposure to alcohol in utero. The most severe problem is called fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), which is a lifelong medical condition that causes poor growth, damage to the central nervous system and abnormal facial features. Babies with FAS often have an abnormally small head, brain, heart, spine and many other anatomical problems. The damage to the central nervous system includes retardation, vision or hearing problems, serious delays in physical development and behavioral problems throughout life.
The Effects of Alcohol During Pregnancy
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