Wine and Pregnancy - Page 2

[sg784]

Originally Posted by Talula Fairie

I'd be interested to know if that is true. Everything I read suggested that the mother's alcohol tolerance has nothing to do with the fetus' likelihood of getting FAS. I always read there is no known safe amount of alcohol, that it's different for every person and they don't know why. But I think I read that in mainstream media.

Thats what Ive always found in American texts. They are so afraid to say something against the mainstream that they come up with "no known safe amount". Theres no known safe amount of anything, is there?? lol. My midwifery texts say studies with up to ten units a week show no detriments. Of course, these are studies that were controlled so there were no other drugs involved, neither was there and binge drinking. Many of the american studies that claim no "safe amount" have mothers that were drinking any where from 2 to 10 drinks per day! I think thats a huge difference from a glass of wine here and there with dinner. Its so important to look at the nitty gritty with studies, technically, you could prove anything you want to with an uncontrolled experiment!

Originally Posted by Watershippy

here is the recent discussion Talula Fairie mentioned:

<http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showthread.php?t=1058907>

lots of good info here

[belltree]

Regarding safe amounts: alcohol occurs in so many products. There are small amounts of alcohol in applesauce and still we feed our kids applesauce. Or freshly pressed fruit juice that sits for a little while tends to have some alcohol as well.

Some have pointed out, that women in other countries are less worried about alcohol during pregnancy. I am not sure how often FAS occurs in the USA, but for instance in Germany FAS and milder stages of FAE occur in at least 0.6% of births with a high number of missed cases.

[Talula Fairie]

Originally Posted by sg784

Thats what Ive always found in American texts. They are so afraid to say something against the mainstream that they come up with "no known safe amount". Theres no known safe amount of anything, is there?? lol. My midwifery texts say studies with up to ten units a week show no detriments. Of course, these are studies that were controlled so there were no other drugs involved, neither was there and binge drinking. Many of the american studies that claim no "safe amount" have mothers that were drinking any where from 2 to 10 drinks per day! I think thats a huge difference from a glass of wine here and there with dinner. Its so important to look at the nitty gritty with studies, technically, you could prove anything you want to with an uncontrolled experiment!

Oh, I don't think a glass of wine every now and then is a big deal. I wouldn't do it, but I don't drink at all for religious reasons. If I did drink I probably wouldn't think much of it. I had a glass of champagne for new years once before I converted when I was 7 months pregnant with #2.

I was just saying that the whole "i have a tolerance so I can drink 2 drinks a day every day" thing sounds a bit off to me :

[punkrockmomma]

Originally Posted by 70toes

It sounds a lot to me like the issue of sunscreen. Docs recommend that you put sunscreen on 24/7, especially on your kids because they don't think we have enough common sense to use discretion in the sun. (Now we have vit d deficiencies!) They have to make hard fast rules that may be a too prudent at times in order to exercise their "duty to protect us". Maybe they feel that instead of saying "The occasional glass of wine is okay." they have to say none at all to stop the lunatics who would party it up with their prego bellies and get drunk every weekend? JMO.

I agree with the above poster. I know for me personally I had a few drinks while I was pregnant w/dd, mostly because I have anxiety problems, and went off all of the meds I was on when I found out I was pregnant, and a drink once in a while helped a lot. I didn't drink everyday and not in excess when I did. But I feel it's a lot safer then a lot of pharmaceuticals out there.
Also, I'm happy to report that DD is a very smart little girl, and has met all of her developmental milestones.

[sg784]

Originally Posted by Talula Fairie

I was just saying that the whole "i have a tolerance so I can drink 2 drinks a day every day" thing sounds a bit off to me :

hmmm, i dont agree with that argument either, Looks like we're on the same side

[nald1]

How much wine is one glass?

[Talula Fairie]

Originally Posted by nald1 

How much wine is one glass?

4 ounces I think.

[kitchensqueen]

I drink wine moderately even though I'm pregnant. I avoided it during the first trimester entirely because it made me feel sick, but once I got over the morning sickness I added it back to dinner once or twice a week. I avoid fortified wines, and never have it more than twice a week. And I usually only have a half glass (2-2.5 ounces), since I'm prone to dehydration headaches moreso while pregnant.

My husband and I researched all the recent medical info on the topic, and we feel that light consumption of wine is more beneficial than harmful. I think the medical establishment really has the all-or-nothing approach because one-size-fits all advice is easier, and they don't want the liability. If you're drinking at alchoholic levels (I think defined as 3+ drinks every day - someone correct me if I'm wrong on the number), then yeah, you're probably going to have a baby suffering from fetal alchohol syndrome. The rest of us I think will give birth to healthy, fully functional children.

[tracymom1]

I drink one glass a week as part of our sabbath celebration. Most of the other Jewish women in my community do as well. My children are fine and the only mc I had was very early and most likely because I had a gastric infection that landed me in the hospital.

I say that if you are a reasonable and educated person, simply do what you feel is best, and stand by your decisions.

[erigeron]

I figure if I don't feel any buzz, then that means my liver is clearing out the alcohol before any appreciable amount hits my bloodstream or baby's.

Then again, since I am a ridiculous lightweight, this means I can drink about 1/2 glass of wine. Oh well.

[tzs]

i'm a big fan of a glass of wine here or therefor that 3rd trimester anxiety/trouble sleeping. i think my doula even suggested it during early labor to relax the body as to not shut down and stall things. 

[jeninejessica]

I'm ok with it in the third trimester, and will 'indulge' if I feel drawn to... but before then I just couldn't weigh the risk and come out 'for it'. There's so much development going on in those early weeks, for me, I couldn't take the risk to drink, even a glass here or there. I would take a sip if it didn't make me insanely nauseas, but anything more than that I couldn't support. Not until the development stages are mostly done and the baby has moved into growth stages. 

[Smokering]

I don't think the human race would have survived if moderate alcohol consumption during pregnancy was terribly, terribly, inherently awful... I mean, haven't there been plenty of cultures throughout history who drink watered-down alcohol almost exclusively, because it makes the water safer to drink?

I don't drink (don't like the taste of alcohol!), so it isn't a huge issue for me; but I've still had some alcohol in various forms during this pregnancy, and haven't really worried about it. I had a tiramisu at a restaurant once that presumably had liqueur in it; and I cook with wine occasionally, which means the finished product will have some alcohol in it (it doesn't all cook away). Heck, vanilla essence is alcohol-based. :p

I remember reading the case in Spiritual Midwifery where a woman got drunk at about 28 weeks and stayed that way for the rest of her pregnancy... to prevent premature labour. It worked (not forever - the baby was still born early, but not ridiculously really, IIRC, and he survived). I was a little horrified when I read it, but they didn't have labour-stopping drugs back then (according to my mother, who used to be a midwife), so... I guess it was the best option! Alcohol relaxes the uterus. I think that's why midwives often recommend mothers have a bath and a glass of wine in early labour - if it's just BHs, the wine will stop the contractions, and if not, well, I guess it calms the mother down for labour. :p Anyway, it was an interesting story...

ETA: Just thought I'd add, it's not a uniquely US view that alcohol should be totally avoided in pregnancy. My government-issued pregnancy book, here in New Zealand, had a rather insulting "NEVER DRINK WHILE PREGNANT" page in it; there are also posters in my MW's office that say "Every time you take a drink, your baby does too... never drink while pregnant" on them. I'm sure the midwives themselves would be fine with the occasional drink, but the government's official line is pretty strict. (And yet, that same pregnancy book stated that home birth is just as safe as hospital birth for low-risk mothers, even first-time ones! Funny mixture of views we have over here...)

[nald1]

I read 5-6 ounces was the norm...I have only drank 6 oz but then worried that was too much - oh, to have a guilt-free glass will come soon enough!