Alcohol intake during Pregnancy alters a Baby's facial feature
Alcohol intake during Pregnancy alters a Baby's facial feature
By: Arlene Gentallan
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| Alcohol intake during Pregnancy alters a Baby's facial feature |
Alcohol intake in excess during pregnancy can have delirious effects to the unborn child. Even small intake of alcohol does have a price.
Pregnant women who drink even the slightest amount of alcohol at any point during pregnancy can consequently lead to minor defects on their baby's facial feature. Further studies are still needed to see if small intake of alcohol consumed during pregnancy has a negative effect to a child's mental development.
According to the researchers "For women who are, or may become pregnant, avoiding alcohol is the safest option."
A 3 year study involving 415 children found through 3-dimensional craniofacial analysis anomalies in facial feature of children whose mother drunk alcohol during pregnancy. Facial anomalies were not readily visible to the naked eye. Anomalies could be seen on the forehead, midface, eyes, nose, or chin. Some facial defects seen are upward displacement of the nose, and depression of the midface.
3D craniofacial analysis was done during a child's first year of life.
Facial defects of the forehead were observed among children whose mother have low exposure to alcohol during the first trimester of pregnancy.
Facial defects seen on the eyes, chin, midface and parietal region were observed in children whose mother have moderate (1 drink per day) to heavy (8 or more drinks per week) intake of alcohol during the first trimester of pregnancy.
Facial defect seen on the chin was observed in children whose mother binge drink (4 or more drinks on a single occasion) on alcohol during the first trimester of pregnancy.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), "There is no known safe level of alcohol use during pregnancy. Women who are pregnant or plan on becoming pregnant should refrain from drinking alcohol."
Resources:
Muggli, E., Matthews, H., et al. (2017). Association Between Prenatal Alcohol Exposure and Craniofacial Shape of Children at 12 Months of Age. JAMA Paediatrics. doi: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2017.0778
https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/faqs.htm#bingeDrinking
