Pregnant women ‘should be advised to totally avoid alcohol’, say two experts

Women should be warned to steer clear of alcohol for the whole of pregnancy to avoid harming their baby, two experts have argued. Mary Mather, a retired paediatrician, and Kate Wiles, a doctoral research fellow in obstetric medicine at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, said the “only ethical advice that can be given is complete abstinence from alcohol in pregnancy”. They said women were faced with “confusing” and “contradictory” messages about drinking while pregnant.

The safest approach is to not to drink at all during pregnancy, although drinking small amounts of alcohol after three months of pregnancy (not more than one or two units, not more than once or twice a week) does not appear to be harmful.

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists

Current guidance “flies in the face of evidence”, while other countries, including the US, Canada, Denmark, France, Norway, Israel, Mexico, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and Spain recommend no alcohol in pregnancy, they said. In the UK, the Department of Health recommends women should avoid alcohol altogether. But, it says, if they do opt to have a drink, they should have no more than one or two units of alcohol (equivalent to one or two small glasses of wine) once or twice a week. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) advises women to avoid alcohol in the first three months in particular, because of the increased risk of miscarriage.

We all deal with uncertainty in our lives on a daily basis; pregnant women are no less capable of doing so.

Dr Patrick O'Brien, a consultant and RCOG spokesman

Health alcohol pregnant