How Much Alcohol Can You Actually Take During Pregnancy?

One leading organization of pediatricians in the United States has spoken, and expecting moms be warned.

No amount of alcohol intake should be considered safe during pregnancy, one of the newest clinical reports from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) concludes. The prenatal exposure to alcoholic beverages was identified to be the primary cause (preventable) of birth defects and intellectual and neurodevelopmental disabilities in children. The report, entitled "Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders," was published online on AAP's official journal, "Pediatrics" for the November 2015 issue.

"The research suggests that the smartest choice for women who are pregnant is to just abstain from alcohol completely," said co-lead author Janet F. Williams, MD, FAAP. The report also substantiates that there is no certain trimester period wherein it's safe to drink alcohol, contrary to the belief of some people.

During pregnancy period, women are advised against any form of alcoholic drink such as beer, wine, and liquor as they all pose similar risk. Moreover, binge drinking poses dose-related risk to the developing fetus. There is an increased risk of infant growth retardation, even when a pregnant woman's consumption was limited to 1 alcoholic drink per day, according to a recent study, says the AAP.

The collective effects of alcohol exposure due to drinking during pregnancy is called Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). The neurocognitive and behavioral problems resulting from prenatal alcohol exposure are lifelong, but it was also noted that early recognition, diagnosis, and therapy for any of these FASD-related condition is very important to improve the results.

According to the report, prenatal alcohol exposure is the more likely cause of structural or functional effects on the brain, heart, bones and spine, kidneys, vision and hearing. It is also linked to higher incidences of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and specific learning disabilities such as difficulties with mathematics and language, visual-spatial functioning, impaired impulse control, information processing, memory skills, problem solving, abstract reasoning and auditory comprehension. 

In one of the latest surveys conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it was found that one in 10 expecting moms in the United States admit to consuming alcohol during their pregnancy, according to a CBS News report. Worse, 3 percent of them have actually confessed consuming four or more alcoholic drinks in one session, which is already considered binge drinking.

Additionally, the AAP notes, in a press release posted on their site, that a survey reveals 50 percent of all women in the United States who are already at child-bearing age consume alcohol within the past month, and close to 8 percent of them did not stop even after knowing of their pregnancy.