D.W.E. – Drinking While Expecting

Initializing something concerning alcohol tends to give it a negative ring – dui, dwi, bac, etc; at least that’s my theory.  A quick search on the internet reveals that the newest research on drinking while pregnant is either:

A. Not OK -  Light drinking while pregnant could lower baby’s IQ

or

B. OK – A Loaded Question: On Drinking While Pregnant

There is evidence for both sides of the argument, which bring me to this recent  article from Scientific American  How Much Alcohol Is Safe for Expectant Mothers?

The gist of the article is

An occasional drink during pregnancy is unlikely to harm most children, but we lack the tools to fully measure alcohol’s effects on the developing brain.

Because individual studies so often conflict, coming to a consensus about how much alcohol—if any—is safe for an expectant mother is a tall order. Nevertheless, one psychologist couple, Sandra and Joseph Jacobson of Wayne State University, has assessed a good deal of the published literature in an attempt to answer the question. They say that no obvious neurobiological deficits have been detected in children whose mothers consume less than one drink a day during pregnancy. Still, the data do not prove that a drink a day in pregnancy is without effect, Sandra Jacobson warns; it could be that researchers have not been looking at the right outcomes or that their tools are too insensitive to pick up any changes.

Obviously anyone who is a regular reader of this blog might have issues that make the point mute, but I thought I would share for informational purposes as it has recently come up in personal conversation.  For further analysis of the question, check out the comments sections of the featured articles, you will recognize a common thread among the “it’s safe to drink while pregnant side” of rationalization.