40 Years Later the Message is Still Partially Eclipsed: Alcohol and Pregnancy Do Not Mix

Day 81 of 99 Days to FASDay and the big news in 2017 when this series was created, is the solar eclipse. For some of us, the sun will completely be eclipsed, for others, it will only be partial.

And it seems fitting today’s message is related to the fact that still, 40 years after Drs. Jones and Smith identified Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, many people still remain in the dark about the effects of not only drinking during pregnancy but also prior to conception – for both males and females.

“It’s deeply concerning,” said Jones, who is president of MotherToBaby, a service of the international non–profit Organization of Teratology Information Specialists (OTIS), and considered the world’s leading expert on FAS as well as other areas of birth defects research. According to Jones, the concern has become amplified as recent, misleading reports have hit the mainstream media that suggest light drinking during pregnancy Is acceptable for all women. “Each woman metabolizes alcohol differently and 40 years of research overwhelmingly supports the conclusion that a ‘safe’ amount of alcohol that any individual woman can drink during pregnancy has simply not been established.”

From the August 21, 2013 article: Motherisk News: Researcher Credited With 1973 Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Discovery Says Alcohol Consumption During Pregnancy Still ‘Major Public Concern’ 40 Years Later

Click here to find a short YouTube video of Dr. Jones reflecting on his statement.

There have been a variety of research articles published since 2017 that continue to show the effects of prenatal alcohol exposure. The most recent (2022) study by Lebel and Long suggests that even small amounts of PAE are associated with structural brain alterations. Check out: Evaluation of Brain Alterations and Behavior in Children With Low Levels of Prenatal Alcohol Exposure

In case you missed it, for more information, check out:

Day 3 of 99 Days to FASDay (link to a study in Europe of women, alcohol and pregnancy)

Day 5 of 99 Days to FASDay (statements on no known safe amount of alcohol during pregnancy)

Day 9 of 99 Days to FASDay (information on paternal alcohol consumption and FASD)

In 2020 we updated the journey for Days 82 – 84 to share information from a CanFASD document. Click: Common Messages for FASD