Image: Highwaystarz-Photography / Getty Images
"Just a little bit." It's the permission Lily's gynecologist on How I Met Your Mother gives her when asked if it's okay to drink wine during pregnancy (eating Cheetos, too). It's super common for women to drink in pregnancy, especially early on before they realize they're with child: A study from this year found that more than half of women did some drinking during the early months. There's disagreement among OBs about what's okay, but new research gives ammo to the "go completely sober for nine months" camp: Even a little bit of booze while pregnant can affect a baby's facial development, the researchers conclude.The study, published Monday in JAMA Pediatrics found that any alcohol consumption during any point of a woman's pregnancy can result in anatomical differences in a child's craniofacial shape. The findings hold up even if the child does not have clinically-diagnosed Fetal Alcohol Spectrum disorder (FASD) or Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS), both of which are linked to cognitive impairments and facial abnormalities like small eyes, thin upper lips, and a smooth philtrum (the little groove between the base of the nose and the top lip). It should be noted, however, that these changes weren't found to affect cognitive health and were only detectable through the imaging techniques used—not the naked eye.
Watch More From TONIC: From Rehab to a Body Bag
For the study, Australian researchers collected data from 415 white children and their mothers, whose alcohol levels were self-reported for the three months before pregnancy and throughout each trimester; and categorized as "low" (less than 20g of alcohol per occasion and less than 70g per week), "moderate" (21-49g of alcohol per occasion and less than 70g per week), "high" (more than 70g per week) and "binge" (more than 50g per occasion). The mothers who abstained from alcohol were used as the control group. (FYI: A standard drink is 14g.)Of the 415 children, 326 were prenatally exposed to alcohol at some point—193 throughout pregnancy, and 133 in the first trimester only. When the children were just shy of one year old, researchers took photos of the babies' faces with multiple cameras at different angles, which produced a 3D photo detailing almost 70,000 points on each baby's face.The imaging techniques showed subtle differences—like a slightly shorter, more upturned nose—in babies whose mothers drank alcohol, even at the lowest amounts, compared those those who abstained. The most pronounced differences occurred between children with any level of alcohol exposure in the first trimester, compared to children who weren't exposed at all.Aside from the amount of alcohol consumed, children of women who reported feeling the effects of alcohol quickly or very quickly exhibited larger craniofacial differences than those of women who didn't—possibly because of genetic differences in how people metabolize alcohol, according to the researchers.This notion that booze can affect a fetus's facial development is not new. "We've known for 20 years that the face [associated with FAS] is presented on a continuum," Susan Astley, director of the Washington State Fetal Alcohol Diagnostic and Prevention Network, told STAT. "In my opinion, they have not really contributed to the literature because they've made the reader think that most of the literature doesn't exist yet." The study also only looked at white babies, so results aren't applicable to those of other ethnicities.If you're pregnant and you've already indulged a little, there's no need to freak out. "At this point, we have not identified any problems for people to worry about," Jane Halliday, lead study author and professor of public health genetics at Murdoch Children's Research Institute, said in an interview with New Scientist. Independent of alcohol, many other factors have an impact on a baby's health and development, like nutrition, Halliday added. Still, the study authors (and the CDC) maintain that avoiding alcohol completely—for women who are pregnant or may become pregnant—is the safest option.
Advertisement
Watch More From TONIC: From Rehab to a Body Bag
For the study, Australian researchers collected data from 415 white children and their mothers, whose alcohol levels were self-reported for the three months before pregnancy and throughout each trimester; and categorized as "low" (less than 20g of alcohol per occasion and less than 70g per week), "moderate" (21-49g of alcohol per occasion and less than 70g per week), "high" (more than 70g per week) and "binge" (more than 50g per occasion). The mothers who abstained from alcohol were used as the control group. (FYI: A standard drink is 14g.)Of the 415 children, 326 were prenatally exposed to alcohol at some point—193 throughout pregnancy, and 133 in the first trimester only. When the children were just shy of one year old, researchers took photos of the babies' faces with multiple cameras at different angles, which produced a 3D photo detailing almost 70,000 points on each baby's face.The imaging techniques showed subtle differences—like a slightly shorter, more upturned nose—in babies whose mothers drank alcohol, even at the lowest amounts, compared those those who abstained. The most pronounced differences occurred between children with any level of alcohol exposure in the first trimester, compared to children who weren't exposed at all.Aside from the amount of alcohol consumed, children of women who reported feeling the effects of alcohol quickly or very quickly exhibited larger craniofacial differences than those of women who didn't—possibly because of genetic differences in how people metabolize alcohol, according to the researchers.This notion that booze can affect a fetus's facial development is not new. "We've known for 20 years that the face [associated with FAS] is presented on a continuum," Susan Astley, director of the Washington State Fetal Alcohol Diagnostic and Prevention Network, told STAT. "In my opinion, they have not really contributed to the literature because they've made the reader think that most of the literature doesn't exist yet." The study also only looked at white babies, so results aren't applicable to those of other ethnicities.If you're pregnant and you've already indulged a little, there's no need to freak out. "At this point, we have not identified any problems for people to worry about," Jane Halliday, lead study author and professor of public health genetics at Murdoch Children's Research Institute, said in an interview with New Scientist. Independent of alcohol, many other factors have an impact on a baby's health and development, like nutrition, Halliday added. Still, the study authors (and the CDC) maintain that avoiding alcohol completely—for women who are pregnant or may become pregnant—is the safest option.