Mummy Buzz

Jul
25
2012

Women Binge Drinking During Pregnancy

Knocking 'Em Back

So you've got your Lululemon yoga pants at the ready. You've practiced your hoo-hoo-ha-ha breathing till kingdom come. Now you're ready to head to the nearest patio for a few mojitos...

A recent survey by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that one in 13 women regularly (as in, at least once a month) drink alcohol during pregnancy, with one of those five binge drinking (as in, downing more than four drinks in a single sitting). 

The data was collected from 2006 through 2010, and was self-reported through random phone surveys, which leads me to suspect women may actually underestimate how much they were actually drinking. 

So much for all the warnings about fetal alcohol syndrome and birth defects, then. It seems many moms-to-be aren't heeding the advice to nix the booze pre-baby. Perhaps surprisingly, it wasn't the younger set knocking them back but expecting moms—predominantly white, educated and employed—aged between 35-44.  

Shocked or not so much? Why do you think older women are more likely to booze it up during pregnancy? Is it harder for them to change their lifestyles pre-baby?