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Original poster

Wine when pregnant

326 replies

patronsaintofglocks · 05/04/2017 12:52

Hi everyone.
I'm nearly 15 weeks pregnant with my first. It's my 24th birthday today.

I'm going out with my DP for dinner this evening, would IBU to have a glass of wine with my meal?

Thank you.

OP posts:
CherriesInTheSnow · 07/04/2017 18:25

And it's not the same as being in a car accident etc. Because putting a poisonous substance in your body is going to have some effect each time, it's not like taking the calculated risk of knowing you will most likely be okay with no consequences whatsoever, even though there is a risk that something could happen. Ongoing deliberate exposure to a substance that you don't need to have and don't know how it will affect your baby is not a good choice IMO. At the very least, it's a completely avoidable risk.

oblada · 07/04/2017 18:47

Quite an interesting discussion!
To those who cite cortisol levels as being a concern in pregnancy - true but not sure why it would be stressful for a pregnant woman to abstain? I didn't find it hard to be honest, it was just a natural and obvious choice.
To those equating this to drugs in labour - a fair point, there are risks associated with painkillers given during labour and I've seen that first hand. For that reason I have opted to not take any medication during labour either although every labour is different and I can understand why some women will take the risks of certain drugs during labour, it's not the same as drinking alcohol which really has no real benefit to mother or baby...
As for equating it to other risks in life: as pp pointed out drinking alcohol is an additional risk and one that is completely unnecessary and has a much more direct impact than other theoretical risks.
For me it makes sense to abstain but to each their own.

Spam88 · 07/04/2017 18:56

Elisaveta I should have been clearer sorry. I likened the two because they're both things that we know cause harm in high amounts, but don't really have evidence about causing harm at small amounts. So with both the legislation/guidance makes the assumption that the same relationship holds true at small amounts too.

Unlike any given food or drink you might consume (I think you were referring to foods in general, not the things that are advised to be avoided?) where there's no evidence of harm at any amount.

Maylani · 07/04/2017 18:57

Chances are it'd be fine but I always thought if something was wrong with my little one, I wouldn't want to live with the doubt if I'd caused or contributed to it by prioritising my desire for a glass of vino or sushi etc.

Edsheeranalbumparty · 07/04/2017 19:03

I read that they don't know exactly what volumes of alcohol causes FAS, but some women can drink quite a lot and not have it, and some women can drink very little and have quite noticeable effects.

Could you quantify 'very little' and link to any studies which show that drinking 'very little' can cause noticeable effects of FAS?

Because putting a poisonous substance in your body is going to have some effect each time, it's not like taking the calculated risk of knowing you will most likely be okay with no consequences whatsoever, even though there is a risk that something could happen.

But you will 'most likely' be Ok if you drink a small amount of alcohol during pregnancy, as evidenced by the many many women who have done this and had perfectly healthy babies? We are talking about a few units of alcohol over 9 months here.

Sallystyle · 07/04/2017 19:04

I was pregnant with three of mine over Xmas.

I had a baileys and probably a glass of wine the next day and I'm a very light drinker. I don't know anyone in my social circle who didn't have at least one drink in pregnancy and none of us are big drinkers.

One glass of wine will not hurt.

Happy Birthday Thanks

Sallystyle · 07/04/2017 19:09

You wouldn't give a baby a glass of wine, would you.

I wouldn't give my baby pizza, chips, cake, orange juice, tea, sugar and so on.

But I ate and drank it in pregnancy at times.

Saying you wouldn't give it your baby is completely ridiculous.

CherriesInTheSnow · 07/04/2017 19:31

www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/drinking-alcohol-early-in-pregnancy-even-in-small-amounts-increases-chances-of-harming-your-baby-9182458.html

I don't really care to debate this TBH, I'm not here to convince anyone. I just personally think it's an unnecessary risk, I drank and smoked a few months before I got pregnant with my first and gave up. It's not a big deal, it's a few months.

CherriesInTheSnow · 07/04/2017 19:31

Gave up a few months before I got pregnant, I should clarify,

ethelfleda · 07/04/2017 19:45

YANBU - it's your body and your choice!

SpreadYourHappiness · 07/04/2017 19:50

ethelfleda Oh yeah, just forget about the human life she'd be poisoning. Hmm

ElisavetaFartsonira · 07/04/2017 20:00

Because putting a poisonous substance in your body is going to have some effect each time

Assuming you mean alcohol, where is the proof of this?

You were right about drinking alcohol being completely different to driving, though. We know there's a small risk to being in a vehicle every time you make a journey, for everyone. We don't know that to be the case about alcohol, so the known risk profile is different.

And thank you spam for the polite response, but that explanation doesn't really hold up.

With respect to foodstuffs, yes you were right I was talking about food in general not things like liver that we know aren't recommended, but the reality is that pretty much nothing anyone eats or drinks will be definitively proven not to cause any harm at any amount. Yet people seem to think it's fine to insist on proof for alcohol that doesn't exist, and nobody requires, for other things. Illogical.

And some of those things definitely do cause or at least risk harm if you have a lot of them. Oily fish, for example.

ElisavetaFartsonira · 07/04/2017 20:01

Could you tell us more about this poisoning spread?

SpreadYourHappiness · 07/04/2017 20:04

Alcohol passes through the placenta and into the baby's bloodstream. If you're fine with literally giving your baby alcohol, well, I'd say you're unfit to be a parent.

Lweji · 07/04/2017 20:31

How many of those who never drank alcohol drank coffee, or tea, or a coke?

Did you know that caffeine is a poison?

What level is 100% safe? Do you know?

ElisavetaFartsonira · 07/04/2017 20:32

Does it? Could you provide some evidence as to how drinking alcohol is literally giving it to your baby?

CherriesInTheSnow · 07/04/2017 20:32

Why do I need to explain to you why alcohol effects babies??? The toxic substances in alcohol will go into your blood stream, and be passed to the baby!

It's not the same as saying "I eat pizza and I wouldn't give m baby that so THERE" Hmm

All food goes is digested, broken down, waste substances are removed, what you need (micro and macro nutrients) absorbed and passed to your baby. There is nothing in alcohol that is good for your baby and the harmful substances will not be removed in time for there to be none passed to your baby!

If you disagree with me, fine. But this is what I hate. People deciding that something is okay because they THINK it has no effect.

CherriesInTheSnow · 07/04/2017 20:33

Lweji it's hardly about never drinking them. It's about being aware of how the things you consume can effect your baby. No I don't drink caffeine because I'm pregnant and I'm aware that it can be harmful to the baby growing inside me!

CherriesInTheSnow · 07/04/2017 20:35

Elis, Sperad has already answered that. It is literally passed (as alcohol) to your baby, through your bloodstream and to baby via the placenta. There really is nothing more to it.

Lweji · 07/04/2017 20:36

If you're fine with literally giving your baby alcohol, well, I'd say you're unfit to be a parent.

Ahem...

Have you ever given liquid medicine to your baby? Did you read the label?

"Ethanol Pharmacokinetics in Neonates and Infants"
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4217115/

MsJudgemental · 07/04/2017 20:40

Have a couple of glasses. I had 1-2 glasses, 1-2 times a week as was the recommended maximum 18 years ago. I also had half a bottle of champagne on Millennium Eve when I was just under 8 months gone. DS is gifted and talented, 17 and in his first year of A levels and heading for a good university to do Computer Science and/or maths.

SpreadYourHappiness · 07/04/2017 20:40

Lweji If you can't see a difference between giving a sick baby medicine to help it get better, and an entitled pregnant woman needing her glass of wine, there's really no helping you.

CherriesInTheSnow · 07/04/2017 20:41

You're talking about medication, not the mother drinking. It's really not the same. The highest amount is about 7%. 7% of what, 1g? Less? It's really not an accurate comparison at all. And the study still states that the safety of alcohol in medicine for infants is dubious and unclear.

makemineadoubleplease · 07/04/2017 20:43

When people keep quoting this guidance it really annoys me:

The Chief Medical Officers for the UK recommend that if you're pregnant or planning to become pregnant, the safest approach is not to drink alcohol at all to keep risks to your baby to a minimum.

Yes of course drinking no alcohol is the safest option to avoid any potential alcohol related issues with the baby.... but that is like saying that only way not to die in a road traffic accident is to never get in an automobile; It's just stating the obvious without manning up and providing helpful guidance for people. Information needs to be provided that will allow mothers to understand the risks, balance the options and make their own decisions without falling back on that cop out statement.

I did a lot of reading in pregnancy and really couldn't find anything that suggested that 1 unit a week would cause any harm to the baby. So I had just that (carefully calculated and measured)

What people need is a reasonable guideline so that they are not in the situation where they have a small glass of wine on their birthday and don't spend the next 5 months wreathed in guilt.

SpreadYourHappiness · 07/04/2017 20:43

ElisavetaFartsonira americanpregnancy.org/is-it-safe/wine-during-pregnancy/