National Organization
on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome:
"No safe time. No
safe amount. No safe alcohol. Period."
[NOFAS
Cover Page]
National Institute
on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism:
"While it is apparent
that children who meet the criteria for FAS are born only to those
mothers who consume large amounts of alcohol during pregnancy, studies
have reported neurobehavioral deficits and intrauterine growth retardation
in infants born to mothers who reported themselves to be moderate
alcohol consumers during pregnancy."
"Clinicians, however,
must offer advice to their patients based upon the best available
scientific evidence. Although some clinicians believe that recommending
total abstention for pregnant women may subject them to unwarranted
guilt about drinking small amounts of alcohol, most accept the need
for clinical caution. Because we do not know at what point alcohol
damage begins, it is prudent to recommend that pregnant women abstain
from alcohol."
[NIAAA
US Dept of Health & Human Services, Alcohol Alert No.13, July
1991]
Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention:
"Public health concern
over the use of alcohol during pregnancy was first signaled in 1981
by the release of a public health advisory from the Office of the
Surgeon General warning women who were pregnant or planning to become
pregnant to abstain from alcohol use because of the potential risks
to the fetus. Since that time the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services issued additional advisories in 1990 and 1995 reiterating
that women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant should
not drink alcohol."
[National
Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities: FAS Prevention
Activities ]
March of Dimes:
"Research shows
that even small amounts of alcohol can increase the risks of birth
defects. So the safest choice is not to drink at all during your
pregnancy."
"In fact, it's best
to stop drinking before you try to become pregnant. Three weeks
after you conceive, your baby's important organs are already forming.
But you may not even know you're pregnant yet. During that time,
alcohol could affect your baby's developing brain and body. So if
you are thinking about getting pregnant, you should stop drinking
before trying to conceive."
[March of Dimes, Alcohol
and Pregnancy: Make the Right Choice]
More from the March
of Dimes:
"No level of alcohol
use during pregnancy has been proven safe. The March of Dimes recommends
that a pregnant woman does not drink any alcohol - including beer,
wine, wine coolers and hard liquor - throughout her pregnancy and
while nursing.
"Drinking while
pregnant can cause fetal alcohol syndrome, a lifelong condition
that can include mental retardation, facial abnormalities, stunted
growth, and learning disorders. It can also increase the risk of
miscarriage, low birthweight, stillbirth and death in early infancy.
When a pregnant woman drinks, alcohol passes swiftly through the
placenta to her fetus. In the unborn baby’s immature body,
alcohol is broken down much more slowly than in an adult’s
body. As a result, the alcohol level of the fetus’s blood can
be even higher and can remain elevated longer than that of the mother’s
blood."
March of Dimes: Drinking
During Pregnancy
United States Institute
of Medicine (1996):
"Universal prevention
intervention strives to ensure that all members of society understand
that drinking alcohol can have hazardous consequences, particularly
during pregnancy. The universal prevention message for FAS is a
conservative one that encourages abstinence prior to conception
and throughout pregnancy as the safest alternative."
[Fetal
Alcohol Syndrome: Diagnosis, Epidemiology, Prevention, and Treatment]
Mayo Clinic:
"When you drink
alcohol, it enters your bloodstream and can reach your developing
fetus by crossing the placenta. Because a fetus metabolizes alcohol
more slowly than an adult does, your developing baby's blood alcohol
concentrations are higher than those in your body. The presence
of alcohol can impair optimal nutrition for your baby's developing
tissues and organs and can damage brain cells."
"Consider giving
up alcohol during your childbearing years if you're sexually active
and you're having unprotected sex. Nearly half of all pregnancies
are unplanned."
[MayoClinic.com:
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome]
Queens University
in Belfast (1999):
"The behavioural
effects observed indicate maternal alcohol consumption has influenced,
possibly permanently, the functioning of the brain and CNS of the
fetus and infant. These effects are observed at low levels of maternal
alcohol consumption (5-6 units per week) and this raises questions
regarding the 'safe' level of alcohol during pregnancy."
[Hepper,
P.G. Report on Prenatal Exposure to Alcohol, 1999]
Wayne State University
Research:
"Sixteen percent
of the children born in the United States are exposed prenatally
to alcohol, making alcohol the most common neurobehavioral teratogen.
Whereas the earliest reports of neurobehavioral toxicity related
to drinking during pregnancy were described among children of alcoholic
mothers, more recent research suggested deleterious outcomes for
children who are exposed prenatally to moderate amounts of alcohol.
Jacobson and Jacobson, in their review of prenatal alcohol exposure
and neurobehavioral development, suggested that even the smallest
dose may adversely affect the fetus."
"Maternal alcohol
consumption even at low levels was adversely related to child behavior;
a dose-response relationship was also identified. The effect was
observed at average levels of exposure of as low as 1 drink per
week. Although effects on mean scores for Externalizing and Aggressive
behaviors were observed at low levels of prenatal alcohol exposure,
effects on Delinquent behavior and Total Problem Scores were observed
at moderate/heavy levels of exposure. Children with any prenatal
alcohol exposure were 3.2 times as likely to have Delinquent behavior
scores in the clinical range compared with nonexposed children.
The relationship between prenatal alcohol exposure and adverse childhood
behavior outcome persisted after controlling for other factors associated
with adverse behavioral outcomes. Clinicians are often asked by
pregnant women if small amounts of alcohol intake are acceptable
during pregnancy. These data suggest that no alcohol during pregnancy
remains the best medical advice."
[Pediatrics
Vol. 108 No. 2 August 2001, p. e34]
Center for Science
in the Public Interest:
"A recent survey
illustrated the need for physician education on "how much"
alcohol consumption is "too much" during pregnancy. 41%
of physicians placed the threshold for FAS at one to three drinks
per day while 38% placed the threshold at one or fewer drinks per
day.17 Both opinions directly contradict the Surgeon General's advice
that women not consume any alcoholic beverages during pregnancy
because of the risk of birth defects."
[CPSI
Booze News Fact Sheet: Fetal Alcohol Syndrome]
Vanderbilt University
School of Medicine:
"Laboratory studies
suggest that a single drinking binge by a pregnant woman can damage
for life the brain of her unborn child."
"Drinking in late
pregnancy is really unsafe for the brain... One glass of wine at
dinner is unlikely to cause the damage, but we cannot say that any
added intake would be safe... The most prudent policy would be to
have no alcohol during pregnancy."
[Science
News, Vol. 158, No. 2, July 8, 2000, p. 28]
American Academy of
Pediatrics (1993):
"Fetal alcohol syndrome
is one of the most common identifiable causes of mental retardation,
with a worldwide incidence estimated to be 1.9 per 1000 livebirths.
However, when children with less severe manifestations of the syndrome
(FAE) are included, the estimated incidence may be as great as 1
in 300 livebirths. Evidence indicates, however, that physicians
may not consistently inquire about alcohol use during pregnancy
or recognize the full spectrum of the effects of prenatal exposure."
"There is no established
'safe dose' of alcohol for pregnant women."
"The consumption
of at least one to two drinks a day was associated with a substantially
increased risk of giving birth to a growth-retarded baby."
"While there is
remaining controversy about the association between maternal consumption
of smaller amounts of alcohol and possible damage to the fetus,
current data do not support the concept that any amount of alcohol
is safe for all pregnant women."
"Since there is
no known safe amount of alcohol consumption during pregnancy, the
Academy recommends abstinence from alcohol for women who are pregnant
or who are planning a pregnancy."
[Schydlower M et al,
Committee on Substance Abuse and Committee on Children With Disabilities,
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Effects. Pediatrics, Vol
91, No.5 May 1993, pp.1004-1006]
American Academy of
Pediatrics (1998):
"FAS is the leading
cause of mental retardation in newborns."
"There is no safe
level of alcohol consumption during pregnancy."
"Even one drink
risks the health of an unborn baby."
"Pregnant? Don't
Drink. Period."
[American
Academy of Pediatrics, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome: 10 Things You Need
to Know
American Academy of
Pediatrics (2000):
"Because there is
no known safe amount of alcohol consumption during pregnancy, the
Academy recommends abstinence from alcohol for women who are pregnant
or who are planning a pregnancy."
"The Academy supports
federal legislation that would require the inclusion of health and
safety messages in all print and broadcast alcohol advertisements
based on the US Surgeon General's warning: 'Drinking during pregnancy
may cause mental retardation and other birth defects. Avoid alcohol
during pregnancy.'"
[Pediatrics,
Volume 106, Number 02, August 2000, pp 358-361]
List compiled
by Teresa Kellerman
FAS Community Resource Center |
