Sympathy Pain

It never fails, If we are out and Sarah decides to have a glass of wine, the eyebrows raise. She bought a bottle a few weeks ago and got the eye from a few folks.

I went to a concert in Atlanta, Cinetrope, who rocked, by the way, and saw a woman, probably in the 3rd trimester in a room full of smokers…and I was the only one who seemed to notice. I was surprised and slightly appalled. I was having problems from the second hand smoke, so I can’t believe the baby wasn’t getting some of it.

So, I wondered…what do the experts say. And here are my findings…

Wine, the verdict is still out. It seems that the experts don’t know the exact risk that alcohol during pregnancy has to the baby. I’ve heard some OB’s say a glass a week was ok during the later part of pregnancy, some say none at all. Here’s a exert from The Labor of Love.com

Studies suggest that even occasional or moderate alcohol intake during pregnancy may carry some risks. While it is extremely unlikely that, if you have a glass of wine two or three times during your pregnancy, your baby would be born with fetal alcohol syndrome, it is still possible that there could be detrimental effects. There are fewer studies about moderate alcohol intake during pregnancy, so it is difficult to say statistically what percentage of women who drink the odd glass of wine during pregnancy experience complications because of it.

Second hand smoke…a big no no. I found lots of articles saying the same thing, this from Medical News Today:

A re-examination of data from earlier studies suggests that exposure to second-hand smoke during pregnancy can be just as detrimental to a developing fetus as primary exposure through maternal smoking, according to a recent paper from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.

Yes it’s true, many of the moms that birthed my generation smoked in the delivery room and had champagne to celebrate the “good news”, and we turned out “just fine”. I hear that a lot. However, were we as healthy as we could have been other wise? Were we under stress in the womb? Did it take us longer to build up a healthy immune system? I don’t know. But, knowing what we now know, why take the risk?

Smoking and second hand smoke REALLY BAD…wine…in strict moderation or none at all.