No Alcohol is Safe During Pregnancy

Pregnant women told no alcohol at all in new guidelines

When I first saw this, I thought it was a new WHO or national guideline. Well, it is a new national policy, but it's new for New Zealand, not the US. Too bad.

I remember being pregnant with my first baby and attending a work function where alcohol was served. I asked for a root beer instead, and someone near me misunderstood me. "You can't drink!" she said, pointing at my swollen belly. I said, "I'm not! I ordered a root beer."

"One drink is ok during pregnancy," another girl said.

"No, it isn't," I said. "I don't think any alcohol is ok during pregnancy."

The first girl suddenly got defensive. "Well, then, you shouldn't be drinking that soda either, for that matter."

Well said, ex-coworker. Sodas should be taboo during pregnancy also, especially caffeinated ones.

I know one pregnant woman who wanted her Pepsi so bad that she changed OBs until she found one who told her that it was ok to drink as much Pepsi as she wanted during pregnancy.

No matter its source, caffeine has been linked to low birth weight, prematurity, and fetal death.

Ingesting high levels of sugar while pregnant may cause gestational diabetes or birth defects.

Pregnant ladies, stick with your vegetables, fruit, and whole grains. Drink only water. Move your body. Take good care of yourself and your growing baby. Everything you do, everything that happens to you, affects your baby, just as everything you do affects you.