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Maternal factors associated with heavy periconceptional alcohol intake and drinking following pregnancy recognition: A post‐partum survey of N ew Z ealand women
Author(s) -
Mallard Simonette R.,
Connor Jennie L.,
Houghton Lisa A.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
drug and alcohol review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.018
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1465-3362
pISSN - 0959-5236
DOI - 10.1111/dar.12024
Subject(s) - pregnancy , medicine , binge drinking , abstinence , alcohol consumption , obstetrics , environmental health , gestation , alcohol , post partum , demography , injury prevention , poison control , psychiatry , biochemistry , genetics , chemistry , sociology , biology
and Aims Alcohol consumption during pregnancy places the foetus at risk of F oetal A lcohol S pectrum D isorders. Little is known about the current prevalence and patterns of alcohol consumption before and following pregnancy recognition in N ew Z ealand. Design and Methods A retrospective survey of 723 post‐partum women resident in maternity wards located across N ew Z ealand was conducted using a self‐administered questionnaire. Maternal sociodemographic and obstetric characteristics and alcohol intake before and after pregnancy recognition were assessed. Results Of the 968 women invited to participate, 78% agreed. Eighty‐two percent of women reported consuming alcohol prior to pregnancy and 20% reported typically consuming > 4 N ew Z ealand standard drinks per occasion. Overall, 34% of women reported drinking at some time during pregnancy. Twelve percent of pregnancies were at high risk of heavy alcohol exposure in early gestation. In fully adjusted analysis, pregnancies most at risk were those of indigenous M āori women, Pacific women, smokers and drug users. Almost one‐quarter (24%) of drinkers continued to drink following pregnancy recognition, and in fully adjusted analysis, continuing to drink was positively associated with frequency of alcohol consumption before pregnancy ( P < 0.001 for linear trend). Discussion and Conclusions To reduce the burden of alcohol‐related harm to the foetus, these findings suggest that N ew Z ealand alcohol policy should be focused not only on promoting total abstinence when planning a pregnancy and when pregnant, but also on reducing ‘binge drinking’ culture and the frequent consumption of lower levels of alcohol. [Mallard SR,Connor JL, Houghton LA. Maternal factors associated with heavy periconceptional alcohol intake and drinking following pregnancy recognition:A post‐partum survey of New Zealand women. Drug Alcohol Rev 2013;32:389–397]