A review of policies on alcohol use during pregnancy in Australia and other English‐speaking countries, 2006

O’Leary, Colleen; Heuzenroeder, Louise; Elliott, Elizabeth J; Bower, Carol

doi:10.5694/j.1326-5377.2007.tb01257.x

Cited by 17 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…Together, these findings suggest that women with unintended pregnancies may have higher levels of risky drinking before pregnancy/before pregnancy recognition, but once they discover their pregnancies, they do not appear to behave differently from other pregnant women. It is important to recognize, though, that official recommendations about alcohol use during pregnancy in the U.S. advise complete abstinence from alcohol (O'Leary et al, 2007) and do not address the value of reducing alcohol intake at later points in pregnancy. These may not be the most appropriate messages for a population of women who find themselves carrying an unwanted pregnancy to term after having consumed alcohol or for the larger group of women who have already consumed alcohol when they discover their pregnancies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alcohol Use Before and During Unwanted Pregnancy

Roberts

Wilsnack

Foster

et al. 2014

Alcoholism Clin & Exp Res

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Background There is little information about pregnancy-related changes in alcohol use and factors contributing to changes among women with unwanted pregnancies. This study describes changes in alcohol use from before pregnancy recognition to during pregnancy and identifies important predictors of alcohol use severity among women with unwanted pregnancies. Methods Data are from the Turnaway Study of 956 women seeking pregnancy termination at 30 U.S. facilities between 2008 and 2010, some of whom were denied care because they were past the gestational limit of the facility where they were recruited and were still pregnant at the baseline interview, one week after termination-seeking. Predictors of alcohol use severity (a latent variable) were identified. Results 56% of the total sample reported any alcohol use the month before pregnancy recognition, with 23% reporting six or more drinks on an occasion. Among the total sample, 35% of those drinking before pregnancy recognition had quit and 20% had reduced one week after termination seeking. Among those denied terminations and still pregnant, 71% had quit and 14% had reduced. In a multivariate model predicting alcohol severity, younger age, still pregnant, one or more previous births, later gestation, childhood physical abuse, and marijuana and other drug use were associated with lower severity; having completed college, tobacco use, and recent physical violence were associated with higher severity. Conclusions The proportion of the total sample drinking before pregnancy recognition is similar to national samples of women of childbearing age while the proportion binge drinking appears higher. Of women denied terminations who were still pregnant, the proportion having quit is similar to other populations of pregnant women. More research is needed to examine whether pregnant women may be substituting alcohol for marijuana and other drugs. Interventions focusing on alcohol use severity during pregnancy may need to also focus on tobacco.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alcohol Use Before and During Unwanted Pregnancy

Roberts

Wilsnack

Foster

et al. 2014

Alcoholism Clin & Exp Res

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“…Prevention will require clear government policy regarding alcohol use in pregnancy and co-operation across government departments including health, education, housing, legal and community services. In Australia, alcohol policy varies between states and territories19 and National Health and Medical Research Alcohol guidelines20 are currently under review. Prevention in high risk, including Indigenous, populations will require the development and evaluation of culturally appropriate and language specific tools.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fetal alcohol syndrome: a prospective national surveillance study

Elliott

Payne

Morris

et al. 2008

Archives of Disease in Childhood

105

106

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“…However, there is a lack of consensus regarding the impact of low intakes on adverse birth outcomes such as preterm birth and small for gestational age (SGA), with studies reporting a wide range and even a protective effect of low intakes in reviews of the evidence 3–10. This is reflected in the different country-level policies regarding alcohol consumption during pregnancy and highlighted in a recent review by O'Leary et al on alcohol policies in English-speaking countries 11. Some, such as the USA, recommend abstinence 12.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maternal alcohol intake prior to and during pregnancy and risk of adverse birth outcomes: evidence from a British cohort

Nykjaer

Alwan

Greenwood

et al. 2014

J Epidemiol Community Health

190

123

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BackgroundEvidence is conflicting regarding the relationship between low maternal alcohol consumption and birth outcomes. This paper aimed to investigate the association between alcohol intake before and during pregnancy with birth weight and gestational age and to examine the effect of timing of exposure.MethodsA prospective cohort in Leeds, UK, of 1303 pregnant women aged 18–45 years. Questionnaires assessed alcohol consumption before pregnancy and for the three trimesters separately. Categories of alcohol consumption were divided into ≤2 units/week and >2 units/week with a non-drinking category as referent. This was related to size at birth and preterm delivery, adjusting for confounders including salivary cotinine as a biomarker of smoking status.ResultsNearly two-thirds of women before pregnancy and over half in the first trimester reported alcohol intakes above the Department of Health (UK) guidelines of ≤2 units/week. Associations with birth outcomes were strongest for intakes >2 units/week before pregnancy and in trimesters 1 and 2 compared to non-drinkers. Even women adhering to the guidelines in the first trimester were at significantly higher risk of having babies with lower birth weight, lower birth centile and preterm birth compared to non-drinkers, after adjusting for confounders (p<0.05).ConclusionsWe found the first trimester to be the period most sensitive to the effect of alcohol on the developing fetus. Women adhering to guidelines in this period were still at increased risk of adverse birth outcomes. Our findings suggest that women should be advised to abstain from alcohol when planning to conceive and throughout pregnancy.

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A review of policies on alcohol use during pregnancy in Australia and other English‐speaking countries, 2006

Cited by 17 publications

References 5 publications

Alcohol Use Before and During Unwanted Pregnancy

Alcohol Use Before and During Unwanted Pregnancy

Fetal alcohol syndrome: a prospective national surveillance study

Maternal alcohol intake prior to and during pregnancy and risk of adverse birth outcomes: evidence from a British cohort

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