Today: 3 August 2025
24 April 2024
1 min read

Moderate Alcohol Intake in Pregnancy Linked to Birth Deficits

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…reports Asian Lite News

Researchers have found that low to moderate alcohol use by pregnant patients may contribute to subtle changes in their babies’ prenatal development. 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 actually was stronger in females,” Bakhireva said. She cautioned that these effects should be interpreted with caution because of the study’s limited statistical power to conduct sex-specific analyses and the challenges of accounting for other contributing factors.

There is a good deal of research on the prenatal effects of heavy alcohol use, usually defined as 14 drinks per week, or binge drinking, defined as four drinks or more per occasion, Bakhireva said. “We know quite a bit from these earlier studies of heavy alcohol use about the effect on prenatal outcomes, especially preterm delivery and growth restriction, as well as neurodevelopmental outcomes, but we specifically focused on more moderate alcohol exposure because it’s much more prevalent,” she 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 everybody drinks before they know they are pregnant, and risky drinking before pregnancy is predictive of drinking later on,” she said. “That’s a unique aspect of the study. We carefully looked at the patterns of drinking around conception and early pregnancy.” Most of the participants substantially reduced their drinking or stopped altogether once they learned they were pregnant, Bakhireva said. Even with reduced alcohol, there were some deficits seen in both male and female infants, however. She emphasizes that larger studies that combine samples across the country are needed to replicate the findings and examine sex-specific effects further. (ANI)

ALSO READ-What’s driving the mass exodus of pregnant women from Russia

Previous Story

Malayalam Cinema’s Unique Journey Amid OTT Landscape

Next Story

SRK Accepts Mohanlal’s Dance Challenge

Latest from Lite Blogs

Books That Transform Lives

Numerology meets personal empowerment in Sunita Das’s “Magical Effect of Numbers”. A compassionate numerologist and philanthropist, Das unveils the power of numbers in shaping one’s destiny, while also supporting social causes like

India’s Innovation Powerhouse Emerges

According to the Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2023 by Startup Genome, San Francisco, USA, five Indian startup ecosystems have secured spots in the top 15 Asian ecosystem: Bengaluru-Karnataka; Kerala; Odisha; Tamil Nadu;

Censor Board Clears Mareesan for Release

The film’s music, composed by the acclaimed Yuvan Shankar Raja, further elevates the emotional and philosophical undertones of the film The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) has officially granted a U/A

Chopra’s Support Fueled ‘Maharaj’

The 2024 historical thriller marked the acting debut of Aamir Khan’s son, Junaid Khan, whom Siddharth described as “like a son.” Filmmaker Siddharth P. Malhotra has credited Aditya Chopra’s unwavering emotional support

EVENT: GBS UK Graduation

London’s Prestigious Wembley Stadium Hosts GBS UK Graduation for 2025 Almost 2,000 Global Banking School UK students graduated from a range of courses, all aimed at making them valuable assets for employers
Go toTop

Don't Miss

Nushrratt shares her thoughts on cinematic evolution

Talking about the same, Nushrratt said, “As I’m not actually

Monsoon diet for pregnant women

Pregnant women must take care of hydration, this is especially