1 in 3 women drinks alcohol while pregnant or breastfeeding: Oz study

Melbourne, June 8 (ANI): If a new Australian study is to be believed, then one in three women drinks alcohol while pregnant or breastfeeding, despite knowing the potential dangers to the infant.

The research from the Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation revealed that although mothers-to-be are advised to cut out alcohol altogether to cut the risk of birth defects, many seem to be ignoring the warnings.

The survey conducted for AER by Galaxy Research has shown that about 90 per cent of Australians believe alcohol should be avoided while a woman is pregnant or breastfeeding.

But, despite widespread knowledge of the dangers, 30 per cent of women admit to drinking when they are expecting or nursing a new baby, the poll of 1014 respondents has shown.

And about one in 10 Australians thinks it's acceptable to drink in moderation while pregnant or breastfeeding, the Herald Sun reports.

AER deputy chair Scott Wilson said that there was no proven safe level of drinking for mothers-to-be.

"The whole issue about foetal alcohol syndrome is it's 100 per cent preventable - don't consume alcohol while pregnant. If you chose to have one or two while you're pregnant, you are, to a certain extent, playing Russian roulette," the Courier Mail quoted him as saying. (ANI)