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Researchers have found that low to moderate alcohol consumption by pregnant patients may contribute to subtle changes in the prenatal development of their babies.
The study was published in the journal ‘Alcohol Clinical and Experimental Research’.
“In exploratory analyses, the effect on gestational age was more pronounced in male infants, and for birth length, it was actually stronger in females,” Bakhireva said.
Also read: Drinking alcohol even ‘occasionally’ during pregnancy is harmful
They cautioned that these effects should be interpreted with caution because of the limited statistical power of the study to conduct gender-specific analyzes and the challenges of accounting for other contributing factors.
There has been considerable research on the prenatal effects of heavy alcohol consumption, which is typically defined as 14 drinks per week or binge drinking, which is defined as four or more drinks per occasion, Bakhireva said. Is.
“We know quite a bit from these earlier studies of heavy alcohol use about the effects on perinatal outcomes, particularly preterm delivery and growth restriction, as well as neurodevelopmental outcomes, but we specifically looked at more moderate alcohol intake. “We’ve focused on it because it’s so prevalent.” He said.
Early pregnancy is a critical period for the formation of organs in the developing fetus, making it a particularly vulnerable window for alcohol exposure, Bakhireva said.
“Almost everyone drinks before they know they are pregnant, and drinking before pregnancy is risky, which can predispose to drinking later,” she said. “This is a unique aspect of the study. We looked carefully at alcohol drinking patterns during conception and early pregnancy.”
Most participants significantly reduced or stopped drinking alcohol when they found out they were pregnant, Bakhireva said. However, even with less alcohol, some deficits were seen in both male and female infants.
She emphasizes that larger studies combining samples across countries are needed to replicate the findings and further examine gender-specific effects.
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