To be disappointed in hearing that many UK woman drink during pregnancy [shock]

[Leati]

Yesterday, I was on a thread when some of the women started questioning about US policy on drinking alcohol during pregnancies. One of the women had heard that if you have a glass of wine, you could be arrested. I assured her that wasn't true but there was chance that if you were visibly pregnant that the restaurant or bar might exercise their right to refuse service. And if a pediatrician became suspicious of drug or alcohol abuse, they could have the baby?s blood tested at birth. If the baby is found to have these in their blood, the child will be taken away. Another woman pitched that she found it disturbing that restaurants had signs warning pregnant women.

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. These women seemed to believe it was actually okay to drink during their pregnancies. Hadn't they heard of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. So today, I did a little research and was shocked to learn that it is a big problem in the UK and that there is little education about it there.

Women who are angry over mothers choosing the bottle over nursing are damaging their children by drinking alcohol. This is not minor damage, in some case it is equivalent to severe mental retardation and in others it less obvious cognitive problems. Overall nearly 10% of babies born in the UK are suffering from some sort of cognitive problems directly related to alcohol exposure in the womb.

What broke my heart the most is that I have been on this site and I know that the mothers on this site care so much for their children. That while I may not always agree with everything said and our perspectives are not always the same, that we share a common love for our children. So I felt compelled to start this thread and share the information. I hope that you will share it, with your loved ones and it may spread.

I have attached some sites so you can research this yourself. These sites are both from the UK and the US.

www.fasaware.co.uk/

www.bbc.co.uk/insideout/west/series2/fetal_alcohol_syndro mfaspregnancydrinkinglearning_difficulties.shtml

www.healthychildrenproject.org/glossa ry/

but if anyone drinks every day while pg then i agree they are drinking too much
apologies for my typing

x posts - I take it back

Leati how do you explain that before the explosion of the tea and coffee trades and the ready availability of clean running water in the western world, the default drink for all adults for centuries (including pregnant women) was ale?

D'you think most people in the West were born with FAS before about the nineteenth century (when tea and coffee became affordable for most people to drink every day)?

I wondered idly if Leati might have found the energy for round 2 last night...

I would be really bored with this now, but am PMSL at being the walking fetus with many faucets to me.

If only I'd known before we spent all that money on a new bathroom...

LL - good post

yes, they were advised they could
but did they??

Have you removed the comments about us attacking your children from your article?

I thought the vast majority posted ( as I did) that they had a couple of drinks a week max. And that was only those who said they drank at all. many did not

MrsMalaprop, I am one of those you describe. I chose not to drink when pg with ds2 but hate the Nanny State style of attempting to ban all risk no matter how small.

littlelapin

When I started this thread, I did not realize that so many women would be coming at me at once. I was overwhelmed and overresponed. For that I apologize. I most certainly did not mean to come across as holier than thou.

Leati - it may surprise you to know that I have not touched a drop of alcohol since conceiving - I wasnt drinking around ovulation or in the period that I was waiting to find out whether I was pregnant or not. Once i found out - I havent has as much of a sip. My view is actually the same as yours - but as Mrs M says, it is the way you have gone about this.

OK. I've had a skim read through the posts and there are a few references to people drinking everyday while pg, but it is in posts about our parent's generation when they were advised to drink stout for iron every day.

Drinking everyday while pg is unacceptable (even by our 'relaxed' standards) I refuse to believe that anyone would have posted that on here without being shot down in flames by everyone else.

But LittleBoot, didn't you know you shouldn't drink caffeine when pg either??

oops put th apostrophe in the wrong place in parents'. Someone shoot me!

Sorry MrsM, guns aren't allowed.

Leati, can I suggest a new thread title

"Do pregnant women in the UK get the appropriate advice on drinking during pregnancy from their GP/Midwive/HV/Consultant"?

Now this might generate a reson response.

Pinning the US against the UK is not on in my book. It reinforces the stereotype that Americans are arrogant and can't appreciate any one else's culture.

Leati
that may be why you have misunderstood the responses you were being given. People were reacting to the idea that pregnant women ( sensible rational pregnant women) should be told what to do in order to avoid what is a completely unproven risk.
NO ONE here at any time has suggested that regular drinking is OK. But most think that if a mother wants an occasional drink then there is no substantive evidence to suggest that she shouldn't.
That is not the same as drinking heavily or being casual about your unborn child's health.

I think a far more honest and straight forward approach might have got a sensible debate going. Something like: "I have been doing some research on the information women receive about drinking when pg. I have noticed that American experts say that women should abstain entirely, whereas British Midwives still suggest that 1/2 unit a week is unlikely to harm your baby. What do you think about this? Why the discrepency?"

Then you would have had a reasonable discussion that wouldn't have run onto 700+ posts.

If that article stands any chance of getting published, which I doubt given the overblown stuff about the personal attacks, any editor worth their salt will want to know the answer to one question: is the incidence of FAS significantly higher in the UK than the US? If not, then it's a complete non-story. If it is, and it is published, then do be aware that any reader can come and read the thread and check for themselves what went on here. You might want to re-read the thread in the cold light of day and reflect on that.

hello i am here atm and I didnt drink everyday. I didnt actually drink at all with my firstborn and with the second I only drank towards the end of the pregnancy and that was an occassional glass of red wine. My ds was born with red hair too and we blamed it on the red wine

I know of people who did drink everyday though and their children were normal. I posted once before about someone I knew who for their ONE drink had a brandy AND babycham EVERY night.

My Mum said she drank makesons EVERY day and this was apparently encouraged.

Ooh so did mine Fio!

Tamum - New Scientist quotes FAS incidence in |US as 3 in 1000 babies.

eleusis and Tantum

Yes I should have posted differently. I had gotten a good response previously using the Am I being unreasonable setting but it was obviously a bad choice.

Tantum

Actually, United States has three times the FAS births a year. But thier population is well over ten times the UK population

Ok, so if that is correct (and obviously I meant the frequency not the absolute numbers) then the incidence in the UK is 3 times higher than the US, and you have your story.