WIBU to have one small beer at 5 weeks pregnant?

[BlackberryQ]

It's a lovely wedding celebration outside on a hot day. How much harm could it do?

I'm on the fence and you can talk me out of it if it's really a bad idea!

Really? So there's evidence of someone having zero blood alcohol level shortly after a glass of wine? I'll believe it when I see the paper

You are aware that the first pass metabolism goes through the liver from the stomach and then hits the systemic blood stream?

I suppose if you took a sip an hour you'd be ok.

The amt that goes through to the placenta is nearly 100% and then there's delayed clearance as it accumulates in amniotic fluid so the fetus swallow it and swims in it for a bit as well.

It's mainly about that gap between no evidence of harm versus evidence of no harm.

We don't have 'evidence of no harm' for anything. How would you go about finding that?

pencils exactly. What is an ok amount of fetal brain damaging drug to take?

The more pragmatic question is how many kids' behavioural/learning/attention and impulsivity issues have been influenced by alcohol?

And it's rhetorical, because there are too many variables to ever tease it out.

Advice to pregnant women about drinking alcohol may cause more harm than good BPAS and University of Kent. Worth a read

@grandolejuke said (to me): "Please stop advising people when you haven't got the basics."

I've considered your recommendation. However, I have decided to ignore your advice as you do not have sufficient evidence to make such a sweeping and, frankly, spurious statement. But thanks for saying 'please'. Such nice manners.

www.doctorportal.com.au/mjainsight/2017/24/mixed-messages-sent-about-alcohol-in-pregnancy/

Where the Professor of medicine compares advising woman to just have small amounts of alcohol to them taking "just a small amount of thalidomide".

I'm sitting here with a coffee. Anyone want to have a go at coffee? It's recommended to not drink too much so therefore it must be, like alcohol, a dangerous substance if they have to tell us to keep it minimal.,,,,

I didn't realise I was pregnant until around 5-6 weeks in - I'd had a few red wines up to that point. I seriously wouldn't worry.

Why ask the question if you have decided already? Some women drink when pregnant, some don't, your baby your choice. For those whinging about men not being judged because they don't carry the baby, you don't have to get pregnant! Unless nature changes miraculously there's no point whining about suggestions to be responsible whilst pregnant.

That's next, Karate. There have already been threads on here from posters who were scolded at coffee shops for being obviously pregnant and ordering a caffeinated drink. These rules are because so many people are too thick to be able to use their brains and common sense.

Dragging in thalidomide is the equivalent of Godwin in discussions about health risk and precautionary principle. Only someone with no decent argument would stoop so low.

Dragging in thalidomide is the equivalent of Godwin in discussions about health risk and precautionary principle. Only someone with no decent argument would stoop so low.

There is no placenta at 5 weeks and therefore no mechanism for the alcohol to get to the baby, regardless of the "safe level" debate.

Coffee isn't teratogenic. Last time I read a study on it the equivalent of more than about 4 cups a day was associated with a reduced birth weight (slightly).

Not fetal malformation though.

You need to compare alcohol to other teratogens to be meaningful with whataboutery. How about warfarin, or retinoic acid, or sodium valproate?

pencils but alcohol is highly teratogenic. As is thalidomide. Alcohol changes your face, is associated with heart and kidney issues and causes brain damage, gives you a small head and affects linear growth.

I

Half a lager once a month will not hurt anyone. Sip it.

There's a lot of hysteria on here- you can find countless articles online about actual alcoholics (bottle of vodka a day, 10 cans of beers a day) or go on to have perfectly healthy children. Newspapers love these stories, google it.
Some studies suggest the instance of FAS in alcoholic mothers is as low as 5%.
So if actual alcoholics are usually ok, we can assume a beer (ONE BEER) is ok, yes?

What interests me most about this type of discussion is the fact we are talking about alcohol. It is something which is completely avoidable. We talk about risk and others have mentioned the risk associated with leaving the house, getting into a car etc. Well, for the most part, these activities are a necessary part of continuing with your normal life. I don't believe any woman should be wrapped up in cotton wool for the entire gestational period.

But alcohol? Why? Is a glass of wine or a small beer so important to people? One might scoff at the comparison with thalidomide, but it's a valid point as it is a known teratogenic, just as alcohol/ethanol is. So why is it so difficult to negate all risk by just avoiding a drink?

Is it a symbolic 'fuck you' to the man? Refusing to allow ourselves to be dictated to any more than we are as women? Or is it that we, as a society, associate alcohol with more than just a drink? Is it now such an integral part of our lives as social beings maybe?

I just find it interesting. I, myself, love a drink. I like the taste, I like the effect. But I don't like it so much that I can't stop it for 9 months. It's not a necessary component to live my life. Why is it such a sticking point for so many women here?

I think if it's that important to you that you would slightly risk your unborn child you should seek help. Cocaine anonymous I hear are the best for any dependency.

Although I doubt your real as this thread is posted every month to the exact same response.

Statistically the risk is so low it's barely on the radar. 1-2 units of alcohol once or twice a week is seen as statistically OK.

I'm 5 months pregnant and have the odd glass of wine or beer, especially when visiting DH's family in France (the French seem much more relaxed about it). I don't think I drank in the first trimester, but I had HG back then, so nothing stayed in anyway.

It's interesting how people muddle risk with morality on here.

If you want to ensure maximum health for your fetus, have them between the ages of 16 and 21, sleep with several sporty blokes in a similar age bracket to get pregnant, live in an affluent farming community, and stay outside as much as you can. Be an Viking or Anglo-Saxon basically, with 21st century medical backup.

Seriously, anyone who talks about risk in pregnancy and is having a first baby after the age of 30 on here is seriously cherry-picking their risk data.

Of course it's absolutlry fine op

reborn I can't speak for anyone else, but in my case alcohol is symbolic here.

I'm very pregnant. Outside of pregnancy my alcohol consumption is limited to 1-2 glasses of champagne 3-4 times a year (usually toasts at birthdays and on our anniversary) - I don't like the taste of most alcohols, and I don't move in circles who drink much at all.

As with a hundred other things in pregnancy (I like sushi, and camembert, and cured meats, and saunas), I read into this as best I could and weighed up the information available before making a decision, and taking a glass of prosecco at a celebration a few months ago. Cue some officious bystander giving me a "You're not actually drinking that, are you?", and a few dirty looks from people.

I resent the fact that my body has become public property in pregnancy. Alcohol is obviously not necessary and its toxicity is known, but the idea that every fool on the street - including obese smokers scoffing bacon sarnies - is now qualified to tell me what I can do with my body really riles me. Given that I want to participate fully in celebrations and not feel I'm missing out - because alcohol does have a social function - I'll continue to assess the risk and reach a decision for myself. Every day we all reach lots of decisions with incomplete data sets, on matters that are both trivial and important. I don't see this any differently.