Drinking alcohol during pregnancy. Harmful later on ??

Question

My step daughter is 2 and half and always seems to be poorly. Nearly every week she is sent home from nursery with either sickness, diarrhea, virus, cold. I know young kids can pick up allsorts when mixing with alot of kids but her mum was an alcoholic and drank every day throughout her pregnancy (and smoke), although she wasn't a low birth weight or had any imediate problems after she was born could the reason why she has low immune system and is always poorly due to her mum drinking when pregnant ?? She eats alot of fruit and veg. My son and my other step-daughter never seem to be ill and even though my son was 14wk prem and had health probs he was never ill this often when 2-3 years old.

Just to make things clear I wasn't comparing her to my own birth child or coming down on her mum. I am just a concerned parent of a 2 year old that is ill nearly every week.

Answer 1

drinking alcohol during pregnancy is the absolute in TABOO



.....you just DON'T DO iT

Answer 2

The constant illness could be related any number of things. I do not, however, think it is related to drinking during the pregnancy. The child could have allergies, not wash her hands, mom did not breast feed her the first two weeks, no hand washing, no vitamins. Children are developing their immune system. Sometimes it is important for them to catch a cold once in a while. This boosts their immune response the next time they catch a cold.

As for drinking and smoking during pregnancy, this hosts an entire range of problems. I could write a dissertation on the topic. The most alarming piece of literature I ever read on the subject was concerning brain pathway formation. At four months of pregnancy, brain neurogenesis occurs in the fetus. This means that neural pathways are being formed. These pathways will eventually give you the ability to learn, speak, and function in a normal capacity. Alcohol halts this process. It is a signal for cell death in brain cells. Not such a good thing to do to your little babies brain. No chance before they even get started.

Answer 3

No, I don't. My parents both almost always drunk and consequently did not care if I drank or not, and so I often did as a young teenager. (I honestly can't remember a time when my father hadn't been drinking). Drinking at a young age was also more socially acceptable in that society than it is where we live now. I don't think I gained anything from the free reign. I prefer not to drink at all now (will do occasionally at social events, etc. but don't keep any alcohol at home). The most important thing, in my opinion, is modelling healthy drinking habits, and not creating a "badass stigma" about drinking. It is true that countries with higher legal ages, have more problems with binge drinking and teens, which surely is not a coincidence. I think that I do model healthy drinking habits but I don't let them drink.

Answer 4

Some children are just ill a lot more than others. I think you really need to speak to your doctor, and maybe have some tests done, to make sure there isn't something wrong with your daughter which could be making her ill all the time.
I would hate to think that by blaming her mothers alcohol problem you were missing something else. I don't know how alcohol can affect children in the long run, again, I think this is something for your doctor to answer.

Answer 5

i drank through both my pregnancies and both my children are a picture of good health, but then i drank in moderation my step daughter is in very bad health and her mother smoked like a chimney so i would say that your step daughters problems could lie with the abuse from alcohol and smoke that she suffered in the womb

Answer 6

It looks to me that maybe you are a bit down on this child and her mum.She gets sick a lot,so do most two yr olds.Their immune systems are just developing.Alcohol tends to cause behavioral problems or even physical deformities,I don't know of any evidence that it causes weakened immunities.Stop comparing her to your child,it isn't fair.When you meet a man with a child you have to accept the whole package,even 'baby mommas' from hell.

Answer 7

some children are just more prone to catching childhood illnesses to others, she will probably grow out of it the older she gets, although i didn't drink through pregnancy my daughter was exactly the same until the age of 7

Answer 8

yes it can be harmful yet some parents dont believe it to be true. it may be the symptoms of when her mother drank and smoked during the pregnancy. there are always after affects of doin something during pregnancy that you shouldnt do.

Answer 9

Excessive drinking during pregnany is harmful to the developing fetus. The occasional glass of wine will do no harm.

Answer 10

If you are worried then get her to a doctor and don't be fobbed off, ask for blood tests and such. Most definately mention the alchol abuse.

Answer 11

look up fetal alcohol syndrome on the web and you will find out the effects

www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/fas

kidshealth.org/parent/medical/brain/fas.html