CDC: Young women should avoid alcohol unless using birth control

·      Women of childbearing age should avoid alcohol unless they're using contraception

o   CDC issued statement to try to reduce the number of babies born with fetal alcohol syndrome

§  Fetal alcohol syndrome: birth defects that result from a woman's use of alcohol during her pregnancy

§  Disabilities, known as fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, include:

·      Growth retardation

·      Characteristic facial features, such as:

o   Small eyes with drooping upper lids

o   Short, upturned nose

o   Flattened cheeks

o   Small jaw

o   Thin upper lip

o   Flattened philtrum

·      Central nervous system problems, including:

o   Mental retardation

o   Hyperactivity

o   Delayed development of gross motor skills such as rolling over, sitting up, crawling and walking

o   Delayed development of fine motor skills

o   Impaired language development

o   Memory problems, poor judgement, distractibility, impulsiveness

o   Problems with learning

o   Seizures

·      CDC says alcohol can permanently harm a developing baby before a woman knows she is pregnant

o   Problematic because ~ ½ of all pregnancies in the US are unplanned

o   Or most women won’t know they are pregnant for the first month when they might still be drinking

·      Estimated that 3.3 million women between ages 15 to 44 are at risk of exposing a developing fetus to alcohol

o   This is because they are sexually active, drink and not using birth control

o   Even those actively trying to get pregnant, continue drinking (3 in 4) after they stop using birth control

·      No known safe level of alcohol at any stage of pregnancy

o   The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends women abstain completely from alcohol while pregnant

·      Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, affect 1 in 20 school children

o   High percentage because alcohol can quickly reach the fetus’s underdeveloped liver and brain through the placenta causing developmental issues

·      Alcohol use in pregnancy costs the USA $5.5 billion a year

o   CDC believes doctors should routinely screen women regarding their alcohol use, both before and during pregnancy

 

CDC: Young women should avoid alcohol unless using birth control

·      Women of childbearing age should avoid alcohol unless they're using contraception

o   CDC issued statement to try to reduce the number of babies born with fetal alcohol syndrome

§  Fetal alcohol syndrome: birth defects that result from a woman's use of alcohol during her pregnancy

§  Disabilities, known as fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, include:

·      Growth retardation

·      Characteristic facial features, such as:

o   Small eyes with drooping upper lids

o   Short, upturned nose

o   Flattened cheeks

o   Small jaw

o   Thin upper lip

o   Flattened philtrum

·      Central nervous system problems, including:

o   Mental retardation

o   Hyperactivity

o   Delayed development of gross motor skills such as rolling over, sitting up, crawling and walking

o   Delayed development of fine motor skills

o   Impaired language development

o   Memory problems, poor judgement, distractibility, impulsiveness

o   Problems with learning

o   Seizures

 

 

·      CDC says alcohol can permanently harm a developing baby before a woman knows she is pregnant

o   Problematic because ~ ½ of all pregnancies in the US are unplanned

o   Or most women won’t know they are pregnant for the first month when they might still be drinking

·      Estimated that 3.3 million women between ages 15 to 44 are at risk of exposing a developing fetus to alcohol

o   This is because they are sexually active, drink and not using birth control

o   Even those actively trying to get pregnant, continue drinking (3 in 4) after they stop using birth control

·      No known safe level of alcohol at any stage of pregnancy

o   The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends women abstain completely from alcohol while pregnant

·      Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, affect 1 in 20 school children

o   High percentage because alcohol can quickly reach the fetus’s underdeveloped liver and brain through the placenta causing developmental issues

·      Alcohol use in pregnancy costs the USA $5.5 billion a year

o   CDC believes doctors should routinely screen women regarding their alcohol use, both before and during pregnancy