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Alcohol and Pregnancy
There are many things that you can not do during pregnancy and one of those is drinking alcohol. It just does not mix and you should avoid it as much as you can. Many people think that a glass here or there will not matter all that much, but in fact, it really can make a huge amount of difference in your baby's health. The small benefits that you get from drinking wine, liquor or even beer just do not outweigh the risks that they pose for baby.
Alcohol and pregnancy do not mix, even slightly. It can cause both physical and mental defects in a child. Fetal alcohol syndrome is found in babies in any given year up to 8000 cases a year. It causes mental retardation in children. Birth weight is significantly lower as well and many times children never catch up either. Other physical attributes to fetal alcohol syndrome include small eyes, upturned noses, short noses, flat cheeks. But, that isn't the bad stuff. Defects in the baby's heart are most common. The brain can be small or even abnormally formed as well. These children are likely to have some form of mental disability. And, they will likely have short attention spans and behavioral problems as well.
The damage is done throughout pregnancy. In the first trimester, drinking alcohol can cause the most instances of physical defects in the child. What makes these cases so tragic is that they are completely preventable. There is no limit of alcohol that is okay. No level of alcohol has been proven to be safe to consume in any stage of pregnancy. The effects of drinking alcohol when pregnant do more than just cause this type of damage. Even if the child is physically okay, he or she will suffer psychological, behavioral and emotional problems throughout their lives. Is a drink worth the risk?
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