Alcohol is the most widely used drug in industrialized countries, and Spain ranks among those with the highest consumption. It is estimated that more than a third of women consume alcohol during pregnancy, something often normalized as it is believed that a small amount does not affect the baby.
However, alcohol crosses the placental barrier in minutes. What the mother drinks, reaches the baby and can cause various disorders in the fetus. Few know, for example, that alcohol use in pregnancy is the most common non-genetic cause of mental retardation . It is impossible to establish a safe dose of alcohol consumption in pregnancy because each organism is different, and since the effects are irreversible, it is best not to consume a drop of alcohol .
What the mother drinks, the baby drinks
Alcohol ingested and absorbed at the level of the gastroduodenal mucosa reaches the maternal circulation quickly (one minute) and, since the passage through the placenta is by simple diffusion, it reaches the fetal circulation almost at the same time and reaches the same levels. than in the maternal. That is, the baby is exposed to the same levels of alcohol as the mother , reaches the same BAC (grams of alcohol per liter of blood) as she. Absorption is rapid and complete, reaching a maximum peak after 20 or 30 minutes .
Alcohol binds to amniotic fluid and fetal tissues, maintaining a level of toxicity that can cause very serious effects in the baby, who obviously has an immature system to metabolize alcohol as an adult’s body does.
Zero alcohol in pregnancy: its risks
The consumption of alcohol during pregnancy can cause physical, mental and motor deficiencies in the baby that can affect him throughout his life.
These consequences can manifest themselves at birth or later in development.
Of all the substances of abuse, alcohol is one of the most dangerous for fetal development . The nervous system and, specifically, the brain, is one of the organs most vulnerable to alcohol consumption during this stage.
Drinking alcohol while pregnant increases the risk of miscarriage and preterm labor. At birth these children may weigh and measure less, although sometimes this growth delay manifests itself later. In our environment, alcohol consumption during pregnancy is the first non-genetic cause of mental retardation, which, however, is entirely preventable.
In addition to this, babies can be born with altered facial features (small head, small upper jaw, small and slanted eyes with characteristic folds, etc.), problems and malformations in other parts of the body such as the heart (closure defects in the septa that communicate the different parts of the heart), the kidneys, the digestive tract, the extremities, etc. In addition, psychomotor retardation, from moderate to profound, can be added.
Later, during childhood, developmental and behavioral disturbances (hyperactivity, memory problems, language, coordination, social adaptation, etc.) may also appear.
Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), what is it?
Alcohol produces various disorders in the fetus, of which the fetal alcohol syndrome is the most representative and serious. The incidence of fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is one or two per thousand newborns , although this figure is questionable, since the diagnosis of FAS often goes unnoticed. In children affected with this syndrome, we find:
- Mental retardation : APS is the most common cause of mental retardation (between 10% and 20%)
- Facial abnormalities : even consuming small amounts of alcohol modifies the face of babies. Children with APS present with facial bone hypoplasia, a thin and poorly defined upper lip, a small nose, and small palpebral fissures with ptosis. Although these facial features may not be apparent at birth, they become more and more apparent as the child grows older.
- Hearing disorders : approximately one third have conduction deafness and another third have sensorineural hearing loss
- Visual problems : strabismus, ocular misalignment, bilateral myopia and amblyopia, among others.
- Delayed development of receptive and expressive language
- Congenital defects
- Behavior disorders
- Newborn infants with APS may be irritable , often hypotonic, with overt tremors, and in some cases alcohol deprivation. Withdrawal symptoms usually occur at 6-12 hours of life. The most striking symptom is irritability, which is usually accompanied by tremors, seizures, hypertonia, hearing disorders, and respiratory effort.
- ADHD : the associations of affected by FAS suspect that many children diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder may have TEAF (Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders).
The best prevention: zero alcohol
Most of the pregnant women do not recognize consuming alcohol and generally when they do, they tend to speak of lower amounts than they actually consume.
However, experts agree that there is no safe minimum amount, and that the only safe thing is to drink zero alcohol during pregnancy because every drop counts .
Even the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) of the United States extends this recommendation not only to pregnant women, but to all women of childbearing age who do not use contraception since they drink alcohol during the first weeks, when still the woman does not know if she is pregnant, it also poses a risk to the fetus.
Can I drink beer without alcohol or beer 0.0 in pregnancy?
It is necessary to clarify that a beer “without” is the same as a beer 0.0. According to the regulations, “without” beer is that which has an alcohol content of less than 1% by volume. In other words, it can actually have up to 0.9% alcohol. The amount is very low but you have to have it Take into account before driving, if you are pregnant or if you have any pathology that advises against alcohol intake, such as diabetes.
The 0.0 beer can also contain alcohol, although the amount is very small, since the maximum alcohol content cannot be higher than 0.04%. If this were not the case, it would lose the denomination of 0.0 to become “without”. It is best not to drink any alcohol, no matter how minimal the dose. But if you are pregnant and you fancy a beer, choose a 0.0 with the least amount of alcohol possible and consumed in moderation .
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