What Happens If Mothers Drink Alcohol When Pregnant?

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As we have seen before, pregnant women should avoid alcohol as much as possible. For those of you who are not drinkers, this might not be a problem. However, for mothers who are pregnant before getting used to drinking alcohol, maybe this is a bit difficult. Although difficult, you should avoid alcohol when you are pregnant, even if you are planning a pregnancy, because this has a bad impact on your baby.

What are the effects of drinking alcohol during pregnancy?

The alcohol you drink later along with the blood flow will flow in your body quickly. The alcohol can penetrate the placenta, so it can reach the baby in your womb. In the baby's body, alcohol will be broken down in the liver. However, your baby's heart is in its developmental stage and is still immature to break down alcohol. As a result, the baby's body cannot break down alcohol as well as your body. So, in the baby's body there is a high level of alcohol in the blood.

Because of the high alcohol content in your baby's body, this can make your pregnancy more at risk of experiencing:

Miscarriage
Premature birth
Stillbirth (stillbirth)
Babies born with low body weight
Birth defects
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) or fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). This can your child experience for life. This condition is characterized by poor growth during the womb, or after birth, or both. Babies can experience facial deformities (smaller head), abnormalities in the heart, and damage to the central nervous system. Damage to the central nervous system can include intellectual disability, delay in physical development, vision, and hearing problems, and various behavioral problems.

Not only that, when babies are born and grow up, babies are also at risk of experiencing problems with learning, speaking, attention, language, and hyperactivity difficulties. Several studies have shown that mothers who at least drink once a week during pregnancy are more likely to have children who show aggressive and naughty behavior compared to pregnant women who do not drink alcohol.

The more or more you drink alcohol during pregnancy will increase the risk of your baby getting FAS or FASD, or can also have mental, physical, or behavioral problems later on. The more alcohol in your body can damage the baby's cells that are developing permanently. So, this can affect the growth of the baby's face, organs, and brain.

Is there a difference between drinking a little and drinking lots of alcohol while pregnant?

How much impact alcohol has on pregnancy depends on:

How much do you drink alcohol while pregnant?
How often do you drink alcohol while pregnant?
At what gestational age do you drink alcohol?

The impact of alcohol can be exacerbated if the mother also smokes, uses drugs, or has poor health conditions during pregnancy. In addition, the impact of alcohol is also more developed in infants who have hereditary properties compared to other babies. However, this is not clear why this can happen.

Some experts say that learning difficulties and memory problems in children can occur if pregnant women drink alcohol during the third trimester of pregnancy. This is the time when your baby has a lot of growth and his brain is developing.

However, how little or how much you drink alcohol, alcohol is still not good for your baby's growth and development. Nobody knows how much alcohol is safe for pregnant women. So, experts advise you not to touch alcohol at all when you are pregnant, even before becoming pregnant. Too much risk for your baby if you drink alcohol while pregnant.

What can I do if I have drunk alcohol while pregnant?

If you have ever drunk alcohol while pregnant now, you should immediately check your pregnancy to a doctor. Tell your doctor that you have ever drunk alcohol. Your doctor may find out the signs associated with FASD in your womb. Your doctor will monitor your health and your baby both before and after birth.

The sooner you tell your doctor about this problem, the better for you and your baby. After that, you should stop drinking alcohol while you are pregnant and when planning your pregnancy again.

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