Women who have babies with FAS are ALCOHOLICS. They did not have a couple of glasses of wine during pregnancy.

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, PEOPLE. If that little amount of alcohol caused FAS, we would have an absolute epidemic of it. Your grandmother's (and if you're my age, your mother's) generation drank plenty of evening cocktails during pregnancy and didn't think twice about it. Do you think all your peers have FAS and you just don't know it? Or, like the PP above, are you still waiting for the symptoms to show up at age 35, 40, 45...?

Correct, PP. The author is an economist trying to shill her book. Remember: you need a catchy angle to sell books. You can't simply state the facts. Only controversial books ensure media coverage. Understand?

21:36 is correct. My friends with adopted kids (through foster care) are sweating it out until their kids are school aged. So is that glass of wine really worth it?

Recently a book called Expecting Better came it out. I just read about it last week. It is penned by an Economist who started to question what she was told during her pregnancy.

There were a few write up on Huff Post, the Atlantic, etc.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323514404578652091268307904.html

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's the folks who are busily trying to find research to justify regular drinking (ie: multiple drinks a week) who are raising eyebrows.

It has not been obvious that one PP who is asking for studies is a "regular" drinker. I think people just want to know the facts.

BS! The while point of these threads is for the mothers to try and justify their poor choices or behavior. It's all about self control and there is NO reason to drink. I want a deli sandwich so bad but there is no need to risk it. Certainly not the same risk as one idiot said of leaving your house or driving. Please.

After dealing with and seeing FAS and FASD kids first hand, there is no way I would risk drinking during pregnancy,

Anonymous wrote:It's the folks who are busily trying to find research to justify regular drinking (ie: multiple drinks a week) who are raising eyebrows.

It has not been obvious that one PP who is asking for studies is a "regular" drinker. I think people just want to know the facts.

Anonymous wrote:The big epidemiological studies out of Britain and Australia have shown no harmful effects for moderate drinking (2 or less drinks). I don't have a citation but it should be easy to google. The British study was on nurses' health and had over a thousand participants. It is less than 4 yrs old and would not have been available when the previous posters searched. There is so much stigma in the US not much research is available here on moderate drinking. FWIW I lost a pregnancy at 21 wks despite following all the rules and not drinking a drop. My second pregnancy I had a little wine and now a healthy 2 yr old.

With all due respect, often signs of fetal alcohol don't become manifest until the child is much older than two.

Ingesting something is riskier than leaving your house, PP. But keep on trying to justify it.

Anonymous wrote:Not true, defensive PP. A sip here or there isnt a big deal....it's not necessary or healthy for the baby, but the PPs aren't ready to slam you for a sip or two. It's the folks who are busily trying to find research to justify regular drinking (ie: multiple drinks a week) who are raising eyebrows. It's just soooo not necessary. And for the PP to say I don't even like the taste of alcohol but drank half of my moms cocktail: Seriously? You couldn't exercise some self control?

I just don't understand comments like this. Alcohol is not necessary for anyone ever. So what? Neither is leaving the house in the morning and, hey, you could get hit by a car. How dare you take that risk when you are carrying a child?? Well, because the risk is insignificant and it's nice to go for a walk. Unlike heavy drinking, moderate drinking is not an established risk. If it is not an established risk and it is something I enjoy, there is no reason why I cannot make the decision for myself whether or not I want to have an occasional drink.

Um, yeah I guess it's fear driven. We all know that alcohol kills brain cells, right? Common knowledge. So drinking alcohol while your baby's brain is developing isn't somewhat risky? Wonder how many ivy leaguers had moms who drank a few drinks each week while pregnant.

Not true, defensive PP. A sip here or there isnt a big deal....it's not necessary or healthy for the baby, but the PPs aren't ready to slam you for a sip or two. It's the folks who are busily trying to find research to justify regular drinking (ie: multiple drinks a week) who are raising eyebrows. It's just soooo not necessary. And for the PP to say I don't even like the taste of alcohol but drank half of my moms cocktail: Seriously? You couldn't exercise some self control?

OP, I hear you. I've read the literature fairly thoroughly (and am a researcher myself, so I know how to evaluate the quality of the studies). There are many studies that show no harmful effects of up to a drink/day, let alone a drink/week. Of course, things like how fast you drink, whether it's on an empty stomach, individual metabolism, etc., matter as well. To me, it's somewhat scientifically disingenuous to ignore those studies, though I understand why the public health message is what it is.

The "no safe amount" line isn't for people who drink once/week during pregnancy, it's written for alcoholics who cannot stop drinking, who drink 5, 6, 10, 15 drinks per day, every day. Some people don't want to admit there are women who drink that much while pregnant, and that's what leads to FASD, so it becomes a very black and white issue. And it's emotional and fear-driven, as many PPs on this thread have so clearly demonstrated.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. The last few posters prove my point about hysterical, emotional, and overwrought. Thanks to those who provided thoughtful and on-topic answers. There will always be a subset of the population who believes that anyone who ever has one drink has a problem -- I can't help those people. How do you know that I'm even pregnant at the moment? I was just asking for information, but this topic always brings out the extremists.

But why do some of these posters HAVE to drink? i mean clearly if you go 9 months and heck, treat yourself to a sip a few weeks before delivery or something like that sure - no big deal. No need to worry and no need to do massive research on the topic. But if you are desperately searching to find out the bare minimum you can get away with on a daily basis... that is something different!!

I disagree. It's because of the people who insist that ANY amount of alcohol is horrible/selfish/causes FAS/whatever. I am not a big drinker. I can easily go months without alcohol when not pregnant, and when I do drink, it's usually sips from DH's wine or beer. I have never drunk more than one glass of wine in an evening in my life; I just don't like it that much. I am 27 weeks pregnant and went out last week for a special meal to celebrate my parents' 45th anniversary. I seriously considered ordering a kir royale (champagne-based cocktail, and one of the few alcoholic drinks I genuinely like the taste of). I didn't do it because I knew the waiter would freak. I did, however, drink about 1/2 of the one my mom ordered for herself, over the course of an hour. I think that was perfectly fine. I have also had occasional sips of DH's beer during my pregnancy, to the tune of perhaps once a month. I think this is perfectly reasonable as well. But under the logic of some people on this board and elsewhere, I am a selfish bitch who has just doomed my baby to a lifetime of alcohol disorders. I certainly hope not. But it would be nice to see some studies on the subject.

Anonymous wrote:If you can't go nine months without drinking, then perhaps you have a problem. They will do blood work on your newborn in the hospital, fwiw. Ever met a kid who was born ith FAS? Not fun. Seriously, ladies...just take a break from drinking during your pregnancy.

Agreed.