Alcohol During Pregnancy: CDC Reports 1 In 13 Pregnant Women Say They Drink

ATLANTA -- A government survey shows 1 in 13 pregnant women drink alcohol and some even go on binges.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says drinking – especially binge drinking – can damage fetal brain development.

The CDC numbers are from national telephone surveys that included 14,000 pregnant women. They were asked whether they drank alcohol the previous month and how much.

Of those who said they drank, nearly 1 in 5 said they went on at least one binge – downing four or more drinks. Pregnant women ages 35 to 44 were the biggest drinkers.

The good news: Binge drinking among pregnant women is down slightly since a similar study was done in the early 2000s.

The survey results from 2006 through 2010 were released Thursday.

Related on HuffPost:

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• Sushi

  Only <em>some </em>Sushi is off limits -- Sushi with cooked fish actually benefits the baby. According to <a href="http://www.americanpregnancy.org/pregnancyhealth/sushimercury.htm" target="_hplink">Americanpregnancy.org</a>, "most fish contain essential nutrients and vitamins needed for growth and development of their baby."

• Coffee

  Caffeine is known to increase a pregnant woman's risk of miscarriage or preterm birth. But, the <a href="http://www.webmd.com/baby/news/20100721/moderate-coffee-drinking-ok-in-pregnancy" target="_hplink">ACOG found that</a> a minimal amount -- less than 200 milligrams a day -- is safe.

• Tuna

  High levels of mercury (found in fish)<a href="http://www.parents.com/pregnancy/my-body/nutrition/is-tuna-safe-during-pregnancy/" target="_hplink"> can harm a baby's nervous system</a>. But, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jena-pincott" target="_hplink">Jena Pincott</a> says that pregnant women craving their favorite fish can have up to 6oz a week.

• Cold Cuts And Deli Meat

  There's a risk that deli meats contain harmful bacteria, but according to <a href="http://www.parents.com/pregnancy/my-body/nutrition/safe-pregnancy-eating/?page=2" target="_hplink">Parents Magazine</a>, pregnant women can eat it heated up -- either steaming or very warm.

• Spicy Foods

  Pregnant women are prone to heartburn after eating spicy foods, but they <a href="http://www.parents.com/pregnancy/my-body/nutrition/safe-pregnancy-eating/?page=2" target="_hplink">won't harm the baby.</a>

• Raw Fruits And Vegetables

  Fruits and veggies may contain bacteria, but<a href="http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/pregnancy-nutrition/PR00109/NSECTIONGROUP=2" target="_hplink"> according to Mayo Clinic</a>, as long as they're thoroughly washed and damaged portions are cut away, they are safe to eat.

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• 'Dutch Babies Sleep' And Other European Parenting Secrets - BabyCenter
• 7 Great Books That Explain The Birds And The Bees - Circle of Moms

Comments

[pompous]

11:02 AM on 07/23/2012

Had an ob/gyn that worked on and Indian reservation in the Southwest early in her career and she was quick to explain that FAS is not caused by an occasional small glass of wine - no that doesn't mean everynight or once a week. My understanding is FAS is primarily caused by excessive regular drinking not the one glass a month.

BPA and pesticides in foods should be a concern and all the abstinence in the world means nothing if one feeds their child the "white food" diet increasing the chances of obesity and typeII diabetes.

Taking care of yourself during pregnancy is crucial but taking care of your child's nutrition while in your care is also important to building good life habits and improves brain development.

[sarahayoung1]

10:51 AM on 07/23/2012

Drinking while pregnant? Really? If you can't stay away from alcohol for AT LEAST 9 months, you're too selfish to be a parent and should be sterilized. And people wonder why there's so many birth defects, autism, personality disorders. etc. Good grief.

[WWJJD]

11:48 AM on 07/23/2012

Seriously, a woman who has a glass of wine in her last months of pregnancy should be sterilized? Tone down the judgement and work on obtaining some FACTS about birth defects, autism and personality disorders before you post nonsense.

[Drea0223]

04:55 AM on 07/30/2012

No kidding..... Sterilized? A glass of wine here and there in the late months of pregnancy is not a big deal. There are arguments that it's beneficial. I donno though. For myself I chose not to but I see nothing wrong with someone who makes the choice to have a glass of wine every once in awhile in the third trimester.

[Jalane]

01:18 PM on 07/23/2012

Personally I think autism is caused by all the injections they get as babies. they get 3 times as many shots as us 50 year olds ever did, not to mention all the additives and hormones put in our foods.

[drkazmd65]

10:04 AM on 07/23/2012

Almost anything in moderation is OK with most things in life - including pregnancy.

And - there is a difference between a woman having a glass of champagne, or wine, or a beer now and again and binging.

[Drea0223]

04:56 AM on 07/30/2012

I am with you.... There is a huge difference between a glass of wine and binge drinking.

[Sacha Nikoll Laine]

09:58 AM on 07/23/2012

I was told that I could have a glass of wine while I was pregnant but my main concern was my baby who didn't choose to be brought in this world. If you are drinking while pregnant, you are selfish and careless.

[freddsky]

09:40 AM on 07/23/2012

Sardines with fresh figs and chocolate sauce are hazardous mainly to the Dad who has to try to procure them from convenience stores at 3 a.m.

[HarmNone]

09:40 AM on 07/23/2012

Wondering why we are a society of over reaction. We get one piece of data and go whole hog the other direction instead of making reasonable, moderate, common sense adjustments. There is a big difference between a glass of wine or beer now and then and going on binges; and someone going on binges have other problems they need to deal with.

[as-i-see-it]

09:25 AM on 07/23/2012

I know that women back in the 50's, and before, were allowed to drink and smoke in moderation during pregnancies. It doesn't appear to have caused much harm. However, if you were to give birth to a child with problems, wouldn't you feel better if you knew you'd done nothing that could have been the cause? It's such a short period of time to make this small sacrifice to ensure a healthy infant.

[Bethanese]

07:42 AM on 07/26/2012

That was exactly the explanation I gave my mother last Christmas Eve, when she kept insisting I "let loose" and have one glass of wine. I knew one glass wouldn't hurt the baby, but why even make that a variable? I told her that if something went wrong, even though logic would suggest that it probably wasn't the one glass of wine I would have consumed during my whole gestation, I would still convince myself that it was and carry around that self-blame forever.

Even now, with a healthy 5-month-old, I have only had two glasses of wine since her birth for a different reason: I don't want to be at all impaired while caring for her. It's worth the small sacrifice and I will have plenty of time when she is a teenager to make up for the lack of wine now.

[John Jorczak]

01:45 PM on 07/30/2012

That makes a lot of sense. Curb your drinking now, and then when your daughter is a teenager, you can make up for lost time. Hahaha. I would like to nominate you for Mother Of The Year. You're the reason that God created abortion clinics and divorce court.

[debblack]

09:05 AM on 07/23/2012

Some right wing control freak Senator, or House of Rep member, will introduce a law saying any woman who drinks any amount of alcohol, at any time, up to 2 weeks before fertilization, is guilty of attempted murder. Or maybe just in Texas, Or in DC where their representative is not allowed to speak.

[WWJJD]

11:49 AM on 07/23/2012

See comment above that thinks that women who have any alcohol during pregnancy should be sterilized! Nice.

[AcaciaJules]

07:17 AM on 07/23/2012

Huge difference between binge drinking, and having a single glass every now and then while pregnant, which doctors now say is fine. Another GREAT article from HuffPo. I'm really becoming more and more disappointed with this site.

[frankenheimer]

09:08 AM on 07/23/2012

Agreed.

[foxp3]

09:18 AM on 07/23/2012

In the UK it's acceptable to have one glass of wine or pint of beer weekly. When my wife was pregnant our doctor told us that when she was pregnant she had to have that weekly glass of wine to keep up with her husband...

[ljb860ljb]

09:32 AM on 07/23/2012

And just a few weeks ago the same CDC stated that one or two drinks per week while pregnant was fine....

[drkazmd65]

10:05 AM on 07/23/2012

Yep,...

[Madelaine]

07:11 AM on 07/23/2012

I suppose if they have no concerns about FAS, and other abnormalities.......

[parhelion]

06:59 AM on 07/23/2012

I noticed this article didn't specify whether the pregnent women knew if they were pregnent or not. From a "responsible, moral" standpoint, this makes a huge difference -- someone who is drinking because they're on a social outing with no idea they're 6 weeks pregnant is a completely separate issue from someone who decides to binge drink six months in. And to be honest, a glass of wine every now and then isn't the problem (unless you or your baby has some other underlying issue). The real problem is the binging, and why people who still think this is cool are having babies in the first place.

[foxp3]

09:22 AM on 07/23/2012

In addition, the statement that older women were the biggest drinkers, seems incompatible with the notion that women who become pregnant later in life do so more willingly and are therefore aware of their pregnancy, or expected pregnancy. Time to look at this CDC poll.

[WWJJD]

11:52 AM on 07/23/2012

Great point. I have seen most of my friends have a glass of wine or a beer later in pregnancy. I have yet to see a drunk pregnant woman or a pregnant woman that even has the desire to binge drink. I am sure it does happen but 1 in 13 seems high and "some even binge drink" is a really loaded statement.

[Crisdean Wulver]

06:58 AM on 07/23/2012

There's a specific time during pregnancy when it's the worst time to drink alcohol. It's a certain stage in the formation of the brain of the fetus. I don't know the effects of drinking at other stages of pregnancy, but drinking at that stage can be disastrous. It can cause permanent and irreversible brain damage.

[AcaciaJules]

07:18 AM on 07/23/2012

Only excessive, a glass every now and then is fine according to studies now.

[Crisdean Wulver]

09:19 AM on 07/23/2012

Actually, the scientific studies are not quite that clear. I tend to be obsessive when it comes to avoiding safety risks. If I was a woman, I think I'd probably avoid alcohol completely during pregnancy, just to be on the safe side. For one thing, alcohol interferes with the absorption of nutrients in the body. Of course a one glass of wine a days won't have that much of an effect. But the fact remains that the body cannot deal with alcohol, and from the moment a person starts drinking, the liver goes to work trying to convert it. The reason we feel intoxicated is because the liver can't convert it instantaneously. If it could, we couldn't get get a buzz from it.   

[oldwolf49]

05:19 AM on 07/23/2012

Lets talk about how many smoke tobacco and or pot and then lets talk about how many kids have mental issues as a result.

[intellifran]

07:54 AM on 07/23/2012

My mom smoked and her mom smoked. It was normal back then and is not attributed to mental illnesses.

[Drea0223]

05:03 AM on 07/30/2012

Yeah I have also never heard that smoking has anything to do with kids ending up with mental illness. My Grandmother on my Dad's side smoked and she had 5 healthy kids. In my doctors office they have this poster on the wall....it shows pictures of things you can do to hurt your fetus and things you can do to help your fetus grow. There is a picture of a cigarette right next to a picture of a hot dog and hamburger. So obviously cigarette's are not good for the baby but they also are not going to cause mental issues or crazy birth defects. Eating junk food is not good for the baby but it's not going to kill it either.

[John Jorczak]

02:01 PM on 07/30/2012

Your mother and grandmother should be thrown in jail. How many packs of cigarettes do you smoke? Get your tubes tied if you're a woman. If you're a man, buy a pack of condoms and do not have children. Thank you.

[itoldyouso4]

08:17 AM on 07/23/2012

I smoked. Doctor told me is was less stressful on the baby to just cut down, which I did. My child is in Honor Program in college. I didn't drink though.

[HarmNone]

09:37 AM on 07/23/2012

Same here, but I did have a glass of wine here and there - probably a total of 3 glasses of wine through the whole 9 mo. (that's not counting the Amaretto Coffees we had the night he was conceived).

[KIVPossum]

03:05 AM on 07/23/2012

My wife went on binges when she was pregnant

Breyers mint chocolate chip. I bought that stuff by the 50 gallon buckets

[sydneymoon]

07:17 AM on 07/23/2012

I honestly craved pickles with my last one...talk about stereotypes.
Perhaps it was the salt.... I have heard a connection between salt cravings and having a boy...but I dunno for sure.

[Kappa51]

10:28 AM on 07/23/2012

I craved lobster....champagne taste on a beer budget.

[Bethanese]

07:49 AM on 07/26/2012

I seriously thought I was having a boy because I was eating like a guy: first Cheetos, then burgers, and I couldn't get enough of my husband's homemade wings. All things I don't love normally. I had a girl.

[Chockolate]

03:03 AM on 07/23/2012

My first born is absolutely fine, and I drank hard every single night he was in utero. It's awesome being the man!

[Crisdean Wulver]

06:59 AM on 07/23/2012

:-D

Good one.

[Jennifer Stansfield]

11:34 AM on 07/23/2012

Of course it's awesome being a man: you don't gain the weight w/o trying, your body doesn't change in ways completely out of your control, your emotions aren't all over the place... I know it's all in the spirit of a good joke, but as a first-time expecting 40 y/o woman, I can tell you it'd be easier for me if my fun husband wasn't binge drinking around me every weekend. Yes, I'm carrying the baby, but we both got into this together. (And no, that doesn't mean I have a problem staying away from alcohol and that wanting to join in the fun with a Sunday brunch mimosa makes me unfit to be a mother)

[captainindustry]

07:30 AM on 07/23/2012

That isn't good science. Yours is a specific case that defies the general rule. That is expected. You should learn what a bell curve is.

Besides. You don't know if he is absolutely fine.

The fact that you are bragging about it and trying to get others to follow in your destructive ways shows weak character.

What's next? I beat my son every day and he's perfectly normal?

[Chockolate]

07:45 AM on 07/23/2012

And in today's lesson we learn that reading helps.

[intellifran]

07:55 AM on 07/23/2012

The poster is a man. Read the entire post.