Alcohol & Health
Treatment
Helping Alcoholics
Medically Reviewed by Annamarie Coy, BA, ICPR, MATS
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Your baby during pregnancy will be affected whether you’re drinking wine, beer, or cocktails. Unlike an adult’s body, it can take twice as long for a fetus to eliminate alcohol from their system.
Alcohol in the fetus can lead to several problems, including:
Drinking any amount of alcohol is unsafe during pregnancy. Because of this, health officials recommend pregnant women avoid alcohol consumption entirely while pregnant. Sexually active women who don’t use birth control are also advised to abstain.
If a woman already drinks alcohol while pregnant, it’s never too late to stop. The earlier she does, the better the baby's chance of living a healthy life.
Exposure to alcohol affects the growth of the baby’s cells, especially in the brain and spinal cord. Drinking while pregnant puts children at risk of fetal alcohol syndrome or “fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD).”
Common symptoms of FASD include:
FASD is sometimes called “the hangover that lasts a lifetime.” Babies with it are more likely to develop physical, behavioral, and social problems later in life.
They also have a higher risk of suffering from a mental health disorder like ADHD, anxiety, or depression. These problems can lead to alcohol addiction as the child grows older.
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Alcohol travels through the placenta via the umbilical cord. During pregnancy, the placenta is the only source of nutrition for the baby. This makes it easy for alcohol ingested by the mother to reach the baby.
From there, alcohol enters the baby’s developing body and affects its organs and body systems. Newborns can also be exposed to alcohol through breast milk.
Alcohol can be detectable in breast milk up to 3 hours after your last drink. During this time, alcohol can be passed on to newborn babies.
However, you can nurse your child if you wait for the alcohol to leave your system completely. Pumping breast milk doesn’t reduce the amount of alcohol inside of it.
The total amount of times it takes for alcohol to be metabolized depends on various factors, including:
Binge drinking, or drinking anywhere from five or more drinks per occasion, tends to have a more detrimental effect. Any amount of alcohol is generally unsafe, so the safest thing pregnant women should do is abstain from alcohol.
However, you shouldn’t panic if you happen to consume a small amount of alcohol during pregnancy. Like all humans, a developing baby’s reaction to alcohol exposure varies from person to person.
The degree of risk is based on a few factors, such as:
There is little research regarding drinking while pregnant because a controlled study requiring pregnant women to drink would be unethical. Most studies are based on self-reported data, which tends to be unreliable.
One study examined over 5,500 pregnant women who reported drinking various amounts of alcohol early in their pregnancies. It found few links between drinking during early pregnancy and development issues, but researchers only tracked short-term outcomes.
Other studies have produced the opposite results, showing that even occasional consumption of small amounts of alcohol increases the risk of complications. Tell your doctor immediately if you drank before or after learning you were pregnant.
There aren’t many studies on alcohol’s effects on a woman’s reproductive ability. However, some studies show chronic or prolonged alcohol use can affect ovulation and menstrual cycles.8
If you’re trying to get pregnant, you should avoid drinking. It’s reported that moderate alcohol consumption may negatively impact in vitro fertilization.
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Most people stop drinking when they realize they’re pregnant, mainly because they don’t want to risk harming their unborn baby. However, someone with alcohol use disorder (AUD) may struggle to quit drinking alcohol.
Here are a few signs that can help you identify if someone you know is drinking alcohol while pregnant:
Several states have passed policies regarding alcohol use during pregnancy. Many of these laws provide pregnant people treatment, information, and other services.
Some states have passed punitive laws on drinking while pregnant. These laws are similar but have different specifics.
Other states provide protective custody in response to a pregnant person’s alcohol consumption. Regardless of their differences in scope and implementation, these policies are intended to protect the fetus by helping its mother avoid alcohol.
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It’s still possible for someone with an alcohol addiction to have a healthy baby. However, this typically depends on whether the mother stops drinking alcohol.
Alcohol consumption can negatively affect a baby’s growth and development. Even low or moderate alcohol consumption can still affect the baby’s health.
If you’re pregnant and struggling to abstain from alcohol, you should speak to your doctor immediately. They’ll explain your options for treatment and help you understand the risks you are imposing on your baby.
Your doctor can help you determine if your drinking has yet affected your baby’s development. You could also consider a treatment program or Alcoholics Anonymous (AA).
Make sure to disclose that you are pregnant before beginning any detox or recovery program. If you have reason to believe your alcohol consumption has affected your baby, speak to your doctor immediately.
Avoiding alcohol while pregnant can be difficult, especially if you’ve been drinking alcohol for a long time. If you’re struggling with AUD, you might be tempted to drink alcohol.
Here are some tips and strategies that can help you stay away from alcohol:
Knowing someone pregnant and drinking alcohol puts you in a tricky position. Most people don’t want to overstep boundaries, but they know the mother is risking her baby.
The best thing you can do if you find yourself in this situation is treat it like any case of alcohol abuse. An intervention is an effective tool for helping someone with alcohol use disorder, as well as someone who is drinking while pregnant.
If you decide to stage an intervention, do so at the right time and ask a professional to assist you. An intervention should also be:
To convince an alcoholic to quit drinking, you must be careful. Depending on how you approach the situation, you may push them away.
Here are a few things you can do to help a pregnant person who’s addicted to alcohol:
If you want to stop drinking alcohol, consider seeking treatment, especially if you have intense urges during pregnancy.
It’s important to understand that people respond to treatment differently. Talk to a doctor or healthcare professional, and they’ll provide recommendations that suit your needs.
Available alcohol treatment programs include:
Alcohol use during pregnancy can lead to developmental issues and birth defects, such as fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). This is a permanent condition that causes physical, mental, and developmental problems.
Due to the risks to you and your baby, you should avoid alcohol completely if you’re pregnant. Generally, no amount of alcohol is safe to drink while pregnant. Even light to moderate alcohol consumption can affect your baby.
If you’re struggling with alcohol use disorder (AUD) while pregnant, consult your healthcare provider to find treatment options to manage your condition.
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