Drinking whilst in charge of a foetus

[AdamW]

On Friday night I was enjoying three or four pints in the local purveyor of fermented vegetable beverages.

At the next table I happened to notice that the heavily pregnant (I would say 7 or 8 months, really showing it) lady who was there with her partner and his friends was drinking guinness.

Now, admittedly it was only a half but I did think to myself "Isn't drinking a very bad thing to do whilst pregnant or nursing?". I always thought that you shouldn't drink FULL STOP whilst pregnant.

Imagine my horror when she then went and had a second half. Now, she was there when we arrived and was still there when we left so it is quite possible that she had more than those two halves.

So, am I wrong? Is there a safe level of alcohol that won't result in increased risk to an unborn baby?

 

[waran]

Most obstetricians would advise women not to drink more than one unit a day whilst pregnant and ideally not to drink alcohol at all.

Obviously randomised trials on the effect of alcohol whilst pregnant don't exist but there are strong associations with reduced birth weight with mothers who have drunk more than 15u / week. And I believe more than 20u/week has correlated well with mental retardation of the child.

There is a contentious syndrome (Fetal alcohol syndrome) described where there is growth retardation, facial deformities and effects on the brain. I think this has been associated with more than 18-20 u per week. But it doesn't occur in all cases.

I believe around 80% of women drink alcohol in this country and only about 50% drink whilst pregnant.

 

[david and julie]

According to my other half who is a registered nurse, ideally she should not drink alcohol at all during pregnancy.

However she also said it is quite common for women to need more iron during pregnancy. This may explain the Guinness. lets face it, it is not usually the drink of choice for most women.

So the answer is, yes Adam you are correct, but lets be realistic who always does as the doctor says!

The baby may born with a beer belly,red face and a smokers cough though!

 

[AdamW]

This is why I made a point of the Guinness! I had thought of this but didn't want to sway opinions with it

Perhaps she wasn't pregnant, just had a really big beer belly from all that drinking

 

[securespark]

Talking of points of Guiness, Can you get me one?

Fermented vegetable bevvies??

How about a pint of Parsnip Delight? Or Carrot Crawler?.....Or the famous potato peeler?

Yes, before everyone bleats, I know beers and wines are often made of fruits, veges etc....including bog-standard beers...just got a vision of weird and wonderful flavours for a minute!

Frequented beer festivals in the eighties and early nineties, and had a gorgeous raspberry beer from Holland. Yummy!

 

[securespark]

Sorry, so tied up trying to get a wise crack off Adam, forgot what I was going to say. Yes, I agree, people should not be selfish when preggers and if they can't give up habits for themselves, they should give up for the sake of the foetuses (Adam, think this is the correct plural. If not, you've got me, mate!!!)

My sister (now alcy) smoked and drank all the way through her pregnancy. The foetus is now nearly 18 and seems not have been affected by the S & D. However, this doesn't make it safe.

But it is amazing what risks people take with their "loved ones".

You can bet your boots that people who drive round with kids incorrectly restrained/not restrained at all will be the first to cry "Our darling child was killed by the reckless driver that went into the back of us" when the injuries leading to death were preventable by the fitting of a proper restraint.

In fact, I followed someone to a shed (forgive me, Ban!!) whose boy was standing up on the back seat. When I got into the store, the mum was being laid into by another mother (who had seen the same car arrive) who was incredulous that the boy was not strapped in at all. The boy's mother first of all said "oh, he just took his belt off when we were in the car park" (Lame excuse). The other woman asked if that were the case, why did she see the boy standing up in the car 1/2 mile down the road?

It degenerated into a slanging match with the mother saying what right have you to interfere? and the other woman saying "what about your sons rights?" "What if you son was horribly injured or died in a crash? what then?"

Very highly entertaining!

But here's this evening's dilemma: is it right for a stranger to intervene in a case like this, or not?

 

[david and julie]

Not sure whether it's right or wrong. but it is definately for the brave.

 

[AdamW]

Blimey, she was brave! If an alien came up to me and said "what one piece of advice can you give me about the human race" it would be "NEVER criticise a woman's abilities as a mother!!!"

But yes, I too get annoyed when I can see a child climbing round the inside of a car. Especially if it has a "baby on board, get yo ass back mo-fo!" type label.

But that is a different thread in itself: do these signs really encourage you to drive any more carefully/further away? Or do they cause you rage as the car with such sticker cuts you up on the motorway right into the two-second gap you were so carefully keeping?

 

[Igorian]

To put a slightly different slant on things, doesn't it really depend upon the order of the day?

By that I mean, one minute white bread is bad, and wholemeal is good. Next, too much wholemeal can cause cancer!

We all grew up on whole fat milk. But now, it is bad, so we pay extra money for milky water. Then suddenly, all dairy products are bad!

Is it really a case of 'we know better these days', or is health just becoming an obsession?

 

[david and julie]

What's happened to the old "everything in moderation adage" I don't smoke, but like a drink.

I would sooner take my chances with either of the above than GM crops or all these E's in our food. If I had the choice.

Health is an obsession(with some people) on the other hand you have younger people absolutely blotto every weekend.

In some respects I think the remarkable advances in drugs and healthcare are to blame. Some people think anything can be fixed. They act as if they are indestructable.

 

[kendor]

According to my other half who is a registered nurse, ideally she should not drink alcohol at all during pregnancy.

However she also said it is quite common for women to need more iron during pregnancy. This may explain the Guinness. lets face it, it is not usually the drink of choice for most women.

So the answer is, yes Adam you are correct, but lets be realistic who always does as the doctor says!

The baby may born with a beer belly,red face and a smokers cough though!

In the old days pregnant women were advised to drink stout to counteract the anemia that some get.

 

[AdamW]

So, it would seem that I was probably concerned over nothing. Porter/stout has iron, people drink it to counteract anaemia including pregnancy-induced anaemia.

A med-student friend of mine told me that eating spinach is not really that good for getting your iron. Apparently it has the effect of blocking the absorption of iron during digestion.

 

[securespark]

You're right, Adam.

Other foods that "block" the absorption of iron are: tea, coffee, whole grains, bran, and beans.

To aid iron absorption when eating these foods, take ascorbic acid.

 

[waran]

Whilst you're both right, nowadays there are more efficient methods of obtaining iron than having to resort to downing pints of guiness! Although possible not as pleasurable

Years ago Guinness might have been recommended but nowadays the effect of the alcohol outweighs the effect of iron supplementation. Most women don't need extra iron, they are more likely to require extra folate.

Interestingly I do believe there was some evidence a while back that showed guinness to have significant anti oxidant properties and possible reduce the risk of artherosclerosis. Perhaps we can get it on prescription now?

 

[securespark]

I've suddenly become a hypochondriac...