Will this harm my unborn baby?

Question

I know drinking alcohol can really harm the fetus, especially during the first 3 months of pregnancy, but i had a few drinks before i knew i was pregnant, i guess i found out when i was like 3 weeks, will it have any serious effect on my baby?????

Answer 1

A few drinks before you knew you were pregnant will not hurt your baby. When it really starts to hurt your baby is when you consistently drink while you know you are pregnant and just don't care. But it doesn't sound like you are this type of person. I too had 3-4 Appletini's the day before i found out I was pregnant. At that time i was 4 weeks, pregnant. I'm 18 weeks and every test has had good results! My baby is perfectly healthy. You have nothing to worry about! But if you are still worried about it, then i would talk to your doctor about it. They will reasure you that it is going to be OK! :-) God bless, and good luck!

Answer 2

If You Are Drinking, Baby Is Too
Some experts say moderate drinking during pregnancy is okay, but there are others who believe taking even one drink is like playing Russian Roulette with your baby's health.
One thing is clear, if you are pregnant and take a drink -- a glass of wine, a beer or a cocktail -- your unborn child takes the same drink. Whatever you eat or drink while pregnant goes directly through your bloodstream into the placenta.

If you're having a drink, baby is too.

For the unborn child, the alcohol interferes with his ability to get enough oxygen and nourishment for normal cell development in the brain and other body organs.

Research has shown that a developing fetus has very little tolerance for alcohol and infants born to mothers who drink during pregnancy can have serious problems.

Answer 3

It does not help at all if you keep on worrying about what had been done earlier at a time when you were not aware you were pregnant. In fact, the worrying part may even be more harmful than the alcohol consumed for it would be about 8 months of worrying which may cause you to sleep badly and experience depression.
The best thing to do is to look after yourself well by taking nutritious and healthy food, have plenty of rest (a real luxury nowadays if you can ) be cheerful, have pleasant thoughts, stay away from cigarette smoke and be happy.
Start shopping for maternity wears. That will keep you busy and free you from worrying. You have a whole wonderful life ahead of you with your baby. Congratulations!

Answer 4

Not to worry. This was the story for my wife with both of my daughters, both are extremely healthy, bright girls. (In fact, she had had a very large amount to drink.)

The consumption of alcohol, used to be common in pregnant women, in fact it was part of being healthy in Irish and Chinese, etc. cultures. Our very 1st OB told us, "when I was pregnant (20 yrs ago) I would have a glass of wine every night." Most of us (over 30) do not realize that our own mothers used to have an occasional drink when they were pregnant. If you really did damage to your fetus, it will show up in the ultrasound, essentially it would have low birth weight--but it won't. Fetal alcohol syndrome is caused by abusive continuous (over many months) use of alcohol--so for your case you have nothing to worry about. Remember, there are many pregnancies that were caused by, um, drinking. And those cases were generally people whom were unaware, and kept partying for awhile before they realize they had conceived. We do not hear about problems from those situations. Why? Because good education has taught us to lay off the alcohol as soon as we find out.

This is not to say you can just go party it up now--you certainly should now refrain, or at the most, just take a sip (if you want to know how good to wine actually is that everyone is drinking.) The problem is that they don't know exactly how much abuse would result in fetal alcohol syndrome, since it varies per woman and fetus.

Your OB will probably (in the age of malpractice lawsuits) give you a really conservative answer to play it safe, like "we won't know if you did damage until the ultrasound" which will likely cause you to freak out for awhile. But don't, believe me, as long as you stopped drinking right after you found out (especially since it was just a few drinks) you have absolutely nothing to worry about. Instead, enjoy being pregnant, it's one of the great joys in life that you only experience for a short time.

Answer 5

No it shouldn't, some doctors say it is okay for pregnant women to drink a few glasses of wine during their pregnancy. It is obviously better if you don't drink at all but a few drinks shouldn't do too much harm. I wouldn't worry,just monitor what you drink from now on.Congratualtions on the baby. Good Luck

Answer 6

Although Im not a doctor, I seriously doubt that those few drinks hurted your baby in any way. I also did the same with my first child ( I thought I didnt want a baby-contemplated having an abortion) So I had a few drinks and even some marijuana. I was about 2 months along. She turned out to be a happy, healthy, beautiful little girl. Shes fine!!! Yours will be also.

Answer 7

Nah. A couple a drinks before you knew shouldn't do anything. If you went on a real bender, then that would be a different story.

At least now that you know, stay away from the alcohol completely. I knew a kid who suffered from fetal alcohol syndrome because his mother drank through her pregnancy. It wasn't pretty.

Answer 8

usually not... mainly b/c major organs such as the lungs and brain are not "developing" i guess you could say... at 3 weeks gestation and earlier, every baby is a zygote... which is just a bunch of cells rapidly producing more and more till they actually create an embryo... and that takes some time... i'd say you are in the safe zone... just avoid alcohol from here on out... oh... and one more thing... avoid hot water such as a hot steamy bath or a hot tub or jacuzzi... hot temperatures can cause severe brain damage and other developmental concerns... good luck with the baby !!!

Answer 9

Although it is possible it is unlikely, I too had some drinks before knowing I was preg with my last child. He is 3 now and very healthy. I think it will be ok. Just don't drink anymore till after the birth and you should be ok.

Answer 10

A few drinks will do no harm-just think of all the people who are pregnant don't know it and are out tonight!! Relax!