Alcohol and pregnancy

Alcohol use in pregnancy includes use of alcohol at any time during gestation, including the time before a mother-to-be is aware that she is pregnant. Alcohol use at some point during pregnancy is common and appears to be rising in prevalence in the United States. Alcohol use during pregnancy has been associated with spontaneous abortion, stillbirth, low birthweight, and prematurity, along with a variety of birth defects and developmental abnormalities with ranging severity. Defects caused by gestational exposure to alcohol are collectively referred to as Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs), with the most severe form termed fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). However, not all pregnancies complicated by alcohol use will result in spontaneous abortion, stillbirth, low birthweight, and prematurity, and not all infants exposed to alcohol in utero will have FASDs or FAS. The variance seen in outcomes of alcohol consumption during pregnancy is poorly understood, however genetic and social risk factors for more severe outcomes have both been suggested. The effect of quantity and gestational timing of alcohol consumption is also poorly understood. However, there is no amount of alcohol that is known to be safe to drink while pregnant, and there is no safe time point or trimester of pregnancy during which alcohol consumption has been proven to be safe. Therefore, medical consensus is to recommend complete abstinence from alcohol during pregnancy. Some evidence suggests that the likelihood of FASD, FAS, miscarriage and stillbirth increases with higher quantity and longer duration of alcohol consumption during pregnancy. Therefore, it is never too late to reduce the likelihood of FASDs, FAS, and alcohol related pregnancy complications by avoiding or limiting alcohol use. Different body systems in the infant grow, mature and develop at specific times during gestation. The consumption of alcohol during one or more of these developmental stages may only result in one or few conditions.