The Department of Health currently advises pregnant women to drink just one or two units of alcohol per week, to minimise risk to their baby.
One alcohol unit is measured as 10ml or 8g of pure alcohol.
This equals one 25ml single measure of whisky (ABV 40%), or a third of a pint of beer (ABV 5-6%) or half a standard (175ml) glass of red wine (ABV 12%).
However the guidelines are set to change drastically, as the British Medical Association warns that women should not drink ANY alcohol at all during their pregnancy.
BMA President Elect, Sir Al Aynsley-Green said: “Exposure to alcohol before birth is one of the most significant causes of childhood brain damage, learning disability, poor behaviour and even criminality, affecting up to one in every 100 infants.
“It is entirely preventable by not drinking alcohol during pregnancy, but despite this, advice to expectant mothers in the UK and especially England is inconsistent, contradictory and confusing, and services to support diagnosis and management of affected children are inadequate.”
He said they should be replaced with one recommendation - no alcohol during pregnancy - which was simpler and safer.
“It has to be concluded that there is no ‘safe’ limit for alcohol consumption during pregnancy,” he explained.
Professor Sheila Hollins, BMA board of science chairman, said: “We know that alcohol exposure during pregnancy can harm the unborn child.
“This can range from subtle damage that affects the child’s intelligence, behaviour and relationships to severe physical and learning disabilities that will have a significant impact throughout the life of the baby and of those around it.”
New medical reports have shown that up to 7,000 babies are born developmentally damaged in Britain every single year.
This is, doctors believe, a direct result of being exposed to alcohol in the womb.
However the British Pregnancy Advisory Service claims that the risk alcohol poses to babies has been exaggerated.
Speaking on their behalf, Claire Murphy said: “If the guidance needs amending in any way, it is to reassure women who have had an episode of binge drinking before they found out that they were pregnant that they are extremely unlikely to have caused their baby harm.
“These women are being scared witless by current alcohol messaging.”
Do you think women should be allowed to drink one small glass of alcohol per week whilst pregnant? Or do you think that alcohol should be removed from their diets completely until the birth of their child?
Let us know via the comments box below now.