Pregnany

[Scarlett]

My friend has just found out she is pregnant- 6 weeks. she is very young for her age and still drinks/smokes and even takes cocaine at weekends. She is 25. She was asking me whether she could still drink- even 1 or 2 units a week. I said I didn't think she should, but I am no expert!

So.. what should she do? Get herself to the Doctor quick and get some advice?

[enigma]

Part 1 :

Hi Scarlett. To be honest , I am more horrified at the news that your friend is taking cocaine whilst pregnant and staggered that she would do so knowing the effect that this would undoubtedly have on her poor unborn baby. She must stop this immediately. The advice re alcohol in pregnancy used to be that there was 'no evidence to suggest that a couple of glasses of wine in pregnancy harmed the unborn foetus' but my argument to that was that there was no evidence to suggest that it was SAFE to drink alcohol during pregnancy and I decided to err on the side of caution whilst pregnant. The advice now is to abstain from drinking any alcohol during pregnancy as it is considered unsafe. (Do a google search on fetal alcohol syndrome for the effects on the unborn child due to alcohol abuse and show your friend it - it doesn't make for pleasant reading.) It's hardly an imposible task to go without alcohol for a measly nine months is it and I am sorry but I am of the belief that if you can't do so , then you should be seriously considering whether or not you should indeed be having children in the first place (I haven't had a drink of alcohol in four years due to being pregnant twice and breastfeeding my children. I don't need alcohol to be happy and the health of my children is always paramount.) - especially if you leave them wide open to developing physical/mental handicaps as a result. Of course there is always the risk in any pregnancy of this happening and this is most unfortunate if it happens but to deliberately to put your child at risk is downright selfish and shows gross stupidity to say the least. She must make a booking appointment with her GP for the sake of her own health , as well as that of her baby so I would urge her to do that as soon as possible. .

[enigma]

Part 2 : Common sense alone should tell your friend that smoking , drinking alcohol and of course taking drugs is hazardous to her unborn child. Perhaps you should also do a search on the effects of smoking during pregnancy and show this to your friend too.

[Altosruleok]

I have two children. During each pregnancy I felt very sick during the evenings and found that a small glass of brandy quelled this. When I asked my GP if this was all right he said it was absolutely fine as long as the one small glass didn't grow or escalate. He said that, because alcohol contains a muscle relaxant it is actually beneficial for anyone who may be liable to miscarriage.
But drinking to excess, smoking and taking cocaine is a terrible form of abuse on the baby. Assuming it survives the pregnancy, the likelihood of smallness, addiction, and brain-damage is high. Not a good start in life for either the child or new mother.

[nicolelemley]

my sister has had two babies and her docter told her also that wine was fine during pregnancy but i dont see how anyone can do that to their child just because they are your docter they dont know everything!! one sip of alcohol can effect them for their whole entire life your freind would be better off getting an abortion..and i am highly against abortion but this is extreme is she a retard??!!