Alcohol Abuse Advice

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

Does Drinking Alcohol Harm An Unborn Baby? Here’s the thing; if you are pregnant and drinking, your baby is drinking as well. As soon as you take a drink of any alcoholic beverage, your unborn child is taking the same drink. Any alcohol you drink goes directly through your bloodstream into the placenta.

Would you fill a bottle with alcohol and give it to a baby? Hopefully the answer is, “no” and if this is the case, you should also give up alcohol if you are pregnant or trying to become pregnant.

Still not convinced? When you drink alcohol while you are pregnant the alcohol interferes with the baby’s ability to get enough oxygen and the nourishment needed for normal cell development in the brain and other body organs.

A developing fetus has a very low tolerance for alcohol. Serious problems may occur when pregnant mothers consume alcohol.

One of the problems a baby may be born with if the mother has been drinking during the pregnancy is Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. No one knows how much alcohol is too much for FAS to develop. Babies born with FAS suffer from mental and physical defects. These problems do not go away.

Fetal Alcohol Effects or FAE causes fewer problems but the issues are still serious. Children born with FAE may face a lifetime of handicaps that will limit their potential. These children often need special care throughout their lifetimes.

If this is not enough to convince you that drinking alcohol can be dangerous to an unborn baby, here are some other possibilities. A baby affected by alcohol may have a small body size and weight. He may develop at a slower rate and have problems catching up to other children his age.

He may be born with a deformed sternum and ribs. A curved spine and hip dislocations may be present as well as missing, bent, fused or webbed fingers or toes. He may have limited movement in his joints and small eye openings.

Babies who have mothers who drink alcohol during pregnancy may be born with facial abnormalities, small jaws, thin upper lips and short, upturned noses. They may be nearsighted or have drooping eyelids. The ears are sometimes low-set or poorly formed.

When mothers consume alcohol during pregnancy their babies may have organ deformities or suffer from heart defects or heart murmurs. Sometimes the kidneys and urinary system are damaged. The genitals may be deformed and they may be born with central nervous system problems that lead to handicaps.

As the baby gets a little older there are other problems that become apparent. They may be mentally challenged and have short attention spans. They may be irritable in infancy and hyperactive in childhood. Poor finger, hand and body coordination may be issues that the child will face.

This is serious business and something that every mother-to-be should carefully consider. Is it worth giving up alcohol to have the best chance possible of having a healthy baby? Why risk the health of your baby and his future?

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