Occasional binge drinking may not harm fetus: study

Occasional binge drinking may not harm fetus: study
LONDON (Reuters) - Pregnant women who occasionallyoverindulge in a night of drinking may not be harming theirfetuses but more evidence is needed to determine whether thisis really the case, British researchers said on Wednesday.
A review of 14 studies also suggested children whosemothers binge drank throughout pregnancy may suffer learningproblems later in life, prompting a call for further researchto see if any links exist.
"Just because we haven't been able to find much evidencedoesn't mean there is no effect," said Ron Gray, a clinicalepidemiologist at the University of Oxford, who led the study."Our view is there needs to be more research."
A number of studies have linked heavy drinking on a regularbasis during pregnancy to stunted growth, birth defects andbrain development problems.
Less clear is the effect of occasional binge drinking,which amounted to about 5 drinks in one session in the studiesGray and his team reviewed.
The researchers initially identified more than 3,500scientific papers between 1970 and 2005 looking at pregnancyand alcohol, which they winnowed down to 14 focusing on bingedrinking.
LITTLE EVIDENCE
They found little substantive evidence binge drinking oncein a while caused problems such as miscarriage, stillbirth,abnormal birth weight, or birth defects such as fetal alcoholsyndrome.
But one study suggested binge drinking could damage braindevelopment resulting in reduced verbal IQ, learning problemsand poorer academic performance.
"However, this study only counted women as bingers if theybinged throughout pregnancy, not just on a single occasion,"the researchers wrote.
Animal studies have shown harmful effects from bingedrinking, which means pregnant women should still take care nomatter how much they consume, Gray said.
At the same time until researchers have more evidence,women who binge drink on occasion should not fret unnecessarilyabout potential harm they are causing to their fetuses, headded.
"When pregnant women report isolated episodes ofbinge-drinking in the absence of a consistently high dailyalcohol intake, as is often the case, it is important to avoidinducing unnecessary anxiety as, at present, the evidence ofrisk seems minimal," the researchers wrote.
(Reporting by Michael Kahn)