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Binge Drinking In Early Pregnancy Increases Risks Binge drinking in the early weeks of pregnancy can cause serious problems for the developing child. "A lot of damage can be done early in the pregnancy, sometimes before you even know you are pregnant," says Dr. Sherry Sellers, an assistant professor of developmental pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine. Binge drinking is defined as consuming five or more alcoholic drinks for men and four drinks for women in one sitting. Recent studies have pointed to an increasing number of binge drinkers among college students. "The worst situations are those who get drunk every weekend. We don't know how much is too much, but some studies show that as little as 2 ounces of alcohol a day could hurt the baby," she says. Brain cell formation and multiplication peaks between the eighth and 16th weeks of pregnancy. "A lot of times women don't find out until they're six weeks pregnant, she says. "Most say they would never drink if they knew they were pregnant, but sometimes by the time they realize it, the damage has been done." Alcohol consumption in pregnancy can result in fetal alcohol syndrome, the leading known cause of mental retardation in newborns. As many as 12,000 infants are born with this condition each year, the American Academy of Pediatrics has reported. Symptoms of fetal alcohol syndrome are growth retardation in weight, height and head circumference; facial abnormalities, such as a thin upper lip, flat cheeks and a flat nasal bridge; and mental retardation, Dr. Sellers says. "You have to have all three for it to be called fetal alcohol syndrome, but you can have fetal alcohol effects without having the full-blown syndrome," she says. Once the damage to the developing fetus has been done, it can't be erased. "The best advice is if you're sexually active, watch the drinking. There's no place in pregnancy where it's okay to drink alcohol, but we know binge drinking early on is the worst thing," Dr. Sellers says. - From Baylor College of Medicine Courtesy of Texas Medical Center News
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