Hi pshaddock,
Good question! I'd like to draw your attention to the disclaimer at
the bottom of this page. I am not a health care practitioner, and
it's always best to follow your own doctor's advice.
With that said, there seems to be no clear cut yes or no on this
subject.
Craving 'real beer' during pregnancy is fairly common... even in women
who despise it normally. Why, I don't know. My mom told me she
craved beer throughout her pregnancy with me - and in all my years of
being around her, she told me she hated the smell and how it tasted.
But during pregnancy she craved it! Go figure. In those days, they
didn't have non-alcoholic beverages and I turned out fine.
But... there is a huge but here. Now-a-days researchers still don't
know what a few non-alcoholic beers over a short period early in
pregnancy can do to a developing child. So once you know you're
pregnant, it's best to say no, say the experts. Caution is the wisest
course. Doctors recommend that women totally abstain from alcohol
when pregnant. According to law, non-alcoholic beer contains a very
small amount of alcohol... no more than 0.5% by volume... however even
a small amount might/could/has the possibility of being harmful. It's
probably best to err on the side of caution and abstain. Physically,
the alcohol can enter the bloodstream of the developing fetus. What's
a small amount to a grown human can not be compared to what enters
into the bloodstream of a fetus.
To be safe, please ask your doctor and then follow his advice. I know
you can go crazy with all the information out there: don't drink
caffeine, caffeine is ok in moderation, don't do this, that's ok. If
you ask 100 people you'll get 200 different opinions!
If I was giving advice to my child I would say, NO not during the
first trimester. Maybe a glass or two during the middle or last
trimester. Moderation is the key. But I'd also tell her to ask her
doctor for his expert opinion.
*****
Indiana Prevention Resource Center on Very-Low Alcohol Beverages
http://www.drugs.indiana.edu/publications/iprc/factline/lowalc.html
VERY-LOW ALCOHOL BEVERAGES
"What looks like a beer, smells like a beer, tastes like a beer, even
foams like a beer, but is not a beer? The answer is: a "NON-ALCOHOLIC
BEER," a name that brewers have given to very low-alcohol beverages.
These so-called "non-alcoholic" brews are not free of alcohol. By law,
non-alcoholic beverages may contain no more than 0.5 percent alcohol
by volume. For products to be treated as an alcoholic beverage under
the law, they must contain at least 0.5 percent alcohol by volume."
[edit]
"Alcohol use during pregnancy can be harmful to the fetus, so the
surgeon general of the United States has recommended that women who
are pregnant or considering pregnancy abstain from using any alcoholic
beverages. Non-alcoholic brews should not be consumed because no level
of alcohol consumption is free of risk to the fetus."
*****
Important Information for Pregnant Women
http://www.pregnancybracelet.com/info.htm
How Alchol Affect the Unborn Baby
"Whenever you take a drink, the alcohol readily crosses the placenta
and enters the baby's bloodstream. However, the baby's tiny
developing system is not equipped to handle alcohol and is affected
much more severely than is the mother.
How Much Drinking Is Harmful?
We really don't know how much alcohol it takes to harm an unborn baby.
At the lowest amounts, the risks from alcohol are probably very
small, but as consumption increases, so do the risks. The more you
drink, the greater the chances you take with the health of your unborn
baby. There is no known safe level of alcohol, so if you avoid
drinking all together, there is no possiblity of having a child with
fetal alcohol syndrome or alcohol-related birth defects. The U.S.
Surgeon General says: "The safest choice is not to drink at all
during pregnancy, or if you are planning to get pregnant." In
addition, women who breast feed should not drink alcoholic beverages
until their babies are weaned, since the alcohol passes from the
mother's milk to the baby."
*****
Nutrition During Pregnancy
Pregnancy dilemma: I can't resist my craving for beer
http://www.babycenter.com/refcap/pregnancy/pregnancynutrition/1288150.html
Valerie says, "I'm my last trimester and I have a huge hankering for a
beer every now and then. When I go out to eat, everyone looks at me
funny if I order one even if I only have a few sips. Does anyone else
share this craving? What can I do to deter dirty looks?"
Read all comments, both pro and con's at the following link:
Parents' Comments Pregnancy dilemma: I can't resist my craving for
beer
http://www.babycenter.com/tips/1288150.html
*****
Google Search: safe to drink non-alcoholic beer during pregnancy
Best regards,
tlspiegel |
