Controversial did anyone drink in pregnancy??

[Lmj25]

Not saying I would was just wondering did anyone?

I have - that level is associated with being small for gestational age for one. Link back up the thread. That’s one meta analysis.

Here’s another: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/29341271/?i=13&from=alcohol%20pregnancy&filters=Review (epigenetics is my thang.)

Here’s one that useful for understanding confounding effects: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/28847489/?i=33&from=alcohol%20pregnancy&filters=Review

But really,
I’m not here to make you feel good about past choices , it’s a choice you make /made and it’s not my business to tell you as an individual what to do. What I am doing is giving from a scientific perspective the current best knowledge we have. And that’s that :
Alcohol is a teratogen
There’s no lower safe limit quantified
very light drinking isn’t associated with negative growth outcomes in most studies
Some studies show negative outcomes at those low levels however meta analysis shows that v light drinking (1 unit max a couple of times a week sort of level) doesn’t seem to be associated with visible growth issues or developmental issues.
The effects of low level exposure on more subtle behavioural /developmental measures is unknown. Some research suggests an effect. There’s even some new computer learning work that can detect very, very subtle facial defects for example.

V light or nil intake is safest. Daily drinking , regardless of it being ‘a small one’ is not advisable.

Ok thanks. I had a miraculous escape with my eight DC it seems! All a good plump weight and no defects in sight - they're all beautiful.

Also, just to be clear, I wasn't seeking any retrospective approval. I really don't need it. Common sense comes in handy with medical things - it can be far more useful than tortuous research identifying minute risks.

I’ve not criticised anyone’s choices - disagreeing with a choice is not the same as personal criticism. You make your choices as an adult and it’s none of my business what other people do.

A few people had asked what the current research status was - I’ve replied to that.
Tortuous research saves a lot of lives, by the way - the team who post-release monitored VIOXX and got it pulled worked off thousands of signals.
Small signals can have big public health impacts, which is why scientists and statisticians like me do the boring shit so the public doesn’t have to ;)

DC1 - found out I was pregnant on Christmas Eve, I had a LOT to drink the fortnight previous on a night out for DBs birthday.

DC2 - found out I was pregnant just after New Years. Didn't get drunk over Christmas period but definitely had a few drinks and was merry.

Didn't drink at all after the BFPs throughout both pregnancies.

DC1 was born with a heart defect, which couldn't be put down to anything specifically but may have had something to do with alcohol in the early weeks, no one knows but that's my gut feeling. So I'm probably more careful than most. If we'd been actively trying to get pregnant (on birth control on both occasions) then I wouldn't have drunk at all.

The research I've seen is that alcohol intake in pregnancy is the most risky in the first trimester, but that small amounts now and then doesn't make any difference.

Others will find that the very occasional drink is good for their mood/overall well being

Whilst others will prioritise the overall well being of their baby.

Whilst others will prioritise the overall well being of their baby.

There is no evidence that the very occasional drink will jeopardize the health of their baby and the mother's mood and well being is important to overall outcomes.

Whilst others will prioritise the overall well being of their baby.

So, just to confirm, you exclusively breastfed your babies for 6 months apiece.

I got wankered when I was unknowingly about three weeks pregnant - then I had a glass of pimms at a wedding at about 30 weeks. I just completely lost the taste for it.

knitfast funny how you lose the taste for it isn’t it? I’m normally a massive tea drinker but both pregnancies I’ve been unable to face it until about five months then liked it again. Alcohol I’ve never really got the taste for it back at all and I used to quite like a wine or a GandT. Just not fussed at all these days (could be the toddler who gets up at five putting me off I suppose...)
I had HG last time (and this time) and I’ve found a lot of the food aversions really strong and lasting even after the pregnancy. There’s very little work done on it (as alas most things to do with women’s health and pregnancy) but it’s fascinating.

Food aversions lasting after pregnancy? Whelp

I'm basically vegetarian these days...eeek

I also could never quite enjoy a g&t after my 1st. Not sure why. Its rather upsetting. I did get my taste for wine back though at least.

Justvhabe a lemonade with a lime in it and pretend its a g&t ? I don't get the whole people will wonder why I'm not drinking as you can say you have a vodka and coke pr g&t but secretly not have any alcohol In it ?

I never got my taste for sav back - I can't bear the smell of it now and I used to drink it by the bucketful

Pregnancy is a series of trade offs. I'm not averse to the occasional glass of wine but I'm essentially while pregnant. I don't however agree with the view that 100% abstinence is the only safe option.

I'm on daily ondansetron which also means accepting a level of risk, in that it's safety is not proven beyond a shadow of a doubt.

But as someone said upthread Anatidae I think, pregnant women are not passive vessels while they are pregnant.

I think I take a reasonable approach towards risk, and I think you do make trade offs. My mother was very anxious when we were growing up, understandably as my sister died aged 4 - but parental anxiety/trying to remove risk to an unrealistic extent is not, IMO, a good outcome for kids either. Of course I'm talking about people making sensible, educated risk assessments based on the available research- not people drinking half a bottle of wine a night while preg and calling it moderation.

So, just to confirm, you exclusively breastfed your babies for 6 months apiece

Yes actually, and I didn't drink then either. It's a wonder I survived really isn't it.

and the mother's mood and well being is important to overall outcomes

It's this kind of statement (made by a few people) that I find most baffling. Why do you need alcohol in order to have a positive mood and a sense of well-being? Alcohol isn't good for us at the best of times. It's not a health drink that contributes to a person's overall well-being! I find the notion that it does most strange. I'll say again, I didn't and don't need alcohol in order to be happy or calm or anything else! I think that if you need alcohol to do those things for you then you have a problem to be honest.

Some people drink because they like the taste of the alcoholic drinks like beer and wine. Non-alcoholic versions of these drinks are NOT nice. So many people just want to drink wine b/c they like the taste not because they NEED it to relax, etc.

I don't need alcohol to relax by any means, but I really enjoy it. It always lifts my mood. Why's that so hard to understand?

I've never had more than 4-5 drinks in a pregnancy. So low levels. There's no evidence that this kind of consumption is unsafe for the baby and I've enjoyed them. I don't see an issue.

Nice try Liz, but there's no explaining it to some people.

I grew up in a big wine-growing region in NZ. It's part and parcel of the culture. I had my 21st at a winery, and my wedding reception at one.

Wine is lovely. A nice oaky, buttery chard is unbeatable. 💛

I could go without that entirely for 9 month, but I didn't want to, so I had the odd one.

I dunno - I'd like to feel bad about it, but it's not happening. The abstemious approach is no doubt right for some, and it's great they've found something that works for them.

I wish them strength in their journey towards finding a way to accept that others do things differently. 🥂

HB or Marlborough Dowager? I totally agree, you can appreciate a glass of wine without drinking to get drunk, or even to be mildly alcohol affected. It can be really just about the taste and the occasion, and it's fine if some people don't have any interest.

I disagree on the chards though, it's the rose I've been missing this summer...

Weekend before bfp I had a very heavy night, and lots of cheese that you shouldn't eat etc.

Now I rarely drink, I had two glasses of champagne (on separate days) at my in-laws 60th birthday party, and a small glass of wine every other weekend.

The risks are increased but still very small with that level of drinking.

My own mother drank 4 glasses a week with me!

HB, Gennz!

I know chardonnay's a bit marmite, but it'll always be my tipple of choice.

Not this again FFS

What!! not allowed to drive with a toddler????

I had 2/3 units a week both times. Oh and a glass every day on holiday in Ibiza