Why Women Must Strictly Avoid Alcohol During Pregnancy

Pregnancy is one of the delicate stages in the life of women and it requires proper care and attention. Various habits and foods can do harm to pregnant women and baby and the consumption of alcohol is one of them. Various researchers and experts agreed that consuming alcohol during pregnancy is harmful and can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, behavioural and mental disorders. Alcohol can cause various disabilities to your fetus and child and these disabilities are called as Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) which generally caused by drinking alcohol.

Effects of alcohol 

Drinking alcohol at any trimester of pregnancy can be hazardous for both the mother and the baby. Alcohol can cause the baby to develop abnormalities that can have lifelong effects. The central nervous system (brain) of the baby can also get affected due to the exposure of alcohol and further leads to many growth and behavioural issues. It’s never too late to give up the habit of consuming alcohol. 

Alcohol in the mother’s blood passes through the umbilical cord and can have lifelong effects including physical, mental or behavioural problems. Here are some common characteristics of the alcohol that might be seen in your child:

• Poor growth: Due to FASD effects, new-borns might have a small head size and may have low weight at the time of their birth. They may not grow or gain average weight or height as normal infants do.
• Birth defects: Children may develop certain birth defects such as vision impairments or hearing loss, speech and language delays.
• Learning disabilities: Due to the lack of development, the child can develop problems such as lack of memory retention power, behavioural and learning problems can also be found as soon as they grow.

Treatment for the child born with Alcohol Effects

It’s very essential to give proper treatment and care at your child if FASDs characteristics are identified in them. Help your child and give extra support so that he won’t face further issues of depression and anxiety. You can counsel your child properly to motivate them. There’s no specific treatment or cure for fetal alcohol syndrome. However, if it recognised early some of the effects can be treated without disturbing the lifecycle. 

Over to you

So, now that you know about the health consequences of alcohol, what’s stopping you to quit it? Always think before you sip alcohol if you are pregnant (or not, as it is quite dangerous for the health) or are planning to be soon.