Many fetal alcohol syndrome babies are born to alcoholic mothers, but milder features are found in babies born to women who have as little as two drinks per day. These features include a lower IQ, poor growth and development, hyperactivity, and a small head.
Making wise choices to keep your baby healthy in the womb must include eliminating alcohol from your diet. Alcohol exposure is most damaging when the synapses (connections) of the brain are being formed—during the last trimester of pregnancy. Evidence published in Science suggests that when the developing baby is exposed to alcohol for even a few hours, a number of brain cells and synapses are permanently destroyed.2
Health Drinks During Pregnancy
Health drinks are a very popular and efficient way to take in important nutrients, vitamin C, and antioxidants, and to provide fiber in the diet. These combination drinks, often with such names as Cider Vinegar and Honey, Wheat Orange, and Papaya Blend, are mixed and sipped on the go, helping busy people get their minimum daily five servings of fruits and vegetables.
Most health drinks made from fresh produce are good for pregnant women—especially if the produce is organic. But there are two reasons to be cautious about health drinks:
1. They may be too much of a good thing. The prenatal vitamin supplements often prescribed to expectant moms are packed with 100 percent of recommended daily allowances. The vitamin intake from a balanced daily diet added to the vitamin supplement pushes those levels to the upper limit. Adding a nutrient-packed health drink to the mix can easily push the daily dose of vitamins over the limits of safety. This is especially true with vitamin A.
At proper levels, vitamin A is important for your baby’s brain and eye development. But too much (more than the USDA recommended daily maximum of 3,000 mcg or 10,000 International Units) can cause brain development to be slowed and can lead to neural tube defects. In this case, vitamin A overload is definitely too much of a good thing.
2. They may not be healthy. Not all products with the words “healthy” or “fruit” or even “vegetable” in their names are actually good for you. Fruity soft drinks, flavored ice teas, sugary fruit juices, fruity wine coolers, and energy and sport drinks as well as fruit “flavored” drinks may not be healthy drinks. They often contain excess sugar, calories, caffeine, and artificial sweeteners and flavorings that easily cross the placenta.
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