Drinking in pregnancy

Actually these things change constantly. When pregnant with my eldest was told to eat liver, 2nd one told no liver but plenty of fish for brain development, 3rd obpne avoid certain fish due to mercury levels,

So how are people meant to take all these " rules" as gospel

This was me, twice! I rarely drink then 2 separate pregnancies got absolutely smashed without knowing I was pregnant.

I couldn't drink the remainder of either of mine as I used those units up in week 3 🤣

No, I'm saying its not true that foetus is most vulnerable in the first few weeks. that's a known fact that they aren't. So I was responding to the poster who suggested we should all stop drinking from before we even get pregnant because before we find out is when the feotus is most at risk.

My comments re proof are that there's no proof that there is harm to babies from small amounts of alcohol. So some people are happy to drink. Others feel that as there's no proof that there ISN"T harm, they won't drink at all. And the two groups will remain apart forever.

Are you saying we have no proof of FASD?

I don’t think that’s true at all…

Yep, I didn’t drink at all while pregnant. It wasn’t difficult. It’s a short time in your life!

Actually I haven’t gone back on the booze and DC is nearly 1!

but that's NOT true. Before the placenta forms, the foetus is less impacted by outside factors and it's why doctors are always telling women not to worry when they realise theyv'e been doign stupid things without realising they're pregnant. Where do people get this stuff from?

I'm not going to comment on the alcohol/no alcohol thing. It seems ot me it's one of those things where the world is split into two camps and there's no bridge. One thinks its reckless and any risk is crazy even if we don't even know these risks and have no proof. The other camp thinks the risks are tiny, if not nonexistent and are happy to make decisions accordingly.

I strongly suspect these two camps go on to be in different camps on all kinds of issues throughout their respective children's lives!

I’d agree really you although you shouldnt live in a town or city due to air pollution either. Shouldn’t have various foods / drinks due to microplastics, pesticides, mercury etc The same should go for men pre conception as the side affects of modern life reduces the number and quality of sperm.

Really as soon as you contemplate conceiving you should live alife of gentle exercise and carefully considered nutrition.

Same here, that was the guidance then … my kids are 24 and 23.

Fgs they just won’t give it a rest will they?

Some people get so worked up when they spot an adult without an alcoholic drink. Even hassling pregnant women now. 🤦🏼‍♀️ Saddos.

The sad truth is that the most vulnerable time for the foetus is before you even realise you are pregnant, in the first few weeks. So you should give up even if you are trying.

This! ⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️

I think drinking after giving birth is much more dangerous. You’re much more likely to drop the baby or fall asleep while feeding.

I haven’t RTFT but no one is going to give their child FAS from a glass of wine a night FGS. It’s a litre of gin they don’t want you drinking. But they think you’re too dumb to understand moderation so they say no alcohol at all. Get a grip OP!

There are tiny levels of risk with so many things in life. Taking unnecessary car journeys carries a level of risk, yet I never see anyone concerned about that.

Well you also need to add the following to the things that have been proven to potentially be damaging to a foetus:

• fish (mercury)
• paracetamol (latest studies suggest risk of learning difficulties, ADHD and autism)
• ibuprofen (this one is actually really bad)
• seafood, raw or cooked, fresh salad, soft cheese, salami, charcuterie (all risk of food poisoning, the salad actually has the highest risk of listeria nowadays)
• undercooked steak, pate etc
• coffee

Getting listeria, damaging the foetus' kidneys by taking an ibuprofen, or proven risk of autism because of paracetamol are pretty fucking bad. Yet we don't judge pregnant women for taking small risks here and there because pregnancy is miserable enough.

Show me the study that shows an ocasional small drink causes FAS? You can't. And until 20 years ago the advice was it was ok to drink one or 2 small drinks ocasionally. We should all be walking around with all kinds of learning difficulties if one glass of alcohol is as dangerous as you think.

Oh and the pain medication you get during a c section absolutely do pass to the foetus. Should we not have c sections or epidurals?

Is it worth the risk? Surely what you're saying is like drinking and driving: you can have a drink and then drive but you're probably less safe than if you hadn't had a drink...

Ahh but talking about what might affect the quality of sperm would involve guilting men. And we can’t have that.

Of course .. its social media, no proof!

Websites that ADVICE no amount is safe, again social media. No proof!

I added it to the discussion as people were coming at me saying one or two rounds of alcohol is safe during pregnancy. I was here to say the ADVICE is NOT to drink any amount.

I was mearly asking... why risk it?
For 1 drink? I would rather not take the risk ... but each to their own

I'm not judging anyone, but I'm being blamed for scaremongering when all ive done is stated what the advice is.

Silly me!

Thats so strange!! I was completely the opposite, I practically lived on seafood and fish during pregnancy! Despite taking all my vitamins and eating a pretty healthy diet, I thought it was my body telling me to top up with omega 3 and all the other good vitamins and minerals in it. Although in the early stages of pregnancy, all I wanted was beige carbs (crappy white toast, white rice, etc), so goodness know what it was trying to tell me then as that was just pure carby crap!!

No source given for this, or references, and you’re adding this to a discussion that’s been pretty data-driven? Where’s the critical thinking at its most basic level?

I also choose not to have a drink in pregnancy so that’s not my motivation here, but “it’s on this graphic I found on social media so it must be true” is… problematic these days.

When I was pregnant, the rule was that you could have the occasional drink. I went to a wedding when I was 20 weeks, and was really craving a glass of champagne. However, I had one sip and it tasted like gone off cider! I only had a tiny sip but spent the rest of the night vomiting. guess my body was telling me that it was poison. Same with any sort of seafood, to the extent that I would feel sick if my partner ate any sort of fish or shellfish.

I definitely drink more than I should but as soon as I was pregnant with both wasn't interested in drinking at all. Not sure if it was something biological or me just knowing you don't do anything that can potentially harm your baby 🤷🏻‍♂️

My first pregnancy wasn't planned. I had a weekend away with friends when I consumed alcohol with all our meals not even knowing I was pregnant.
You'll be pleased to know my son has a Masters degree and a very successful career 🙂
The 'no alcohol' guidance in pregnancy is just another way that authorities use the lowest common denominator to issue advice on the basis that they think we're all stupid

I would judge someone who drank a lot but is there no nuance? The odd alchoholic drink will not cause FAS. If you were go down the rabbit hole of possible harm then arguably just sbout everything is dangerous. Drinking bottled water is risky, it can contain microplastics that build up in the testes reducing quantity and quality of sperm which is a risk factor for ASD.

I think it’s really important that peope are able to consider the risks of harm and apply them to their situation.

For me personally I wouldn't be able to enjoy a glass of wine knowing the potential effects it could have so I'd rather just not drink. I wouldn't judge other pregnant women for having the occasional glass at a special occasion though, it's up to them what they do.

I'd be more annoyed about people constantly asking if you miss alcohol, either you're fine not drinking it so you don't care anyway or you do miss it and them bringing it up isn't going to help.