Alcohol consumption is very normalized in society and it is often thought that drinking alcohol during pregnancy is not harmful ("Total, nothing happens for a drink"), but the truth is that it is. There is no safe amount of alcohol that can be drunk during pregnancy, and considering that the effects of alcohol on the baby are irreversible, there is no responsible consumption that is worth it. The most recommended is avoid it completely.
However, being known the harmful effects of alcohol on the baby during pregnancy, it is very striking that the bottles of alcoholic beverages do not contain beyond product features, a health warning with the risk to the health of consumers and especially of pregnant women.
Risks for pregnant women
However small the amount consumed, the placenta does not filter the alcohol the mother consumes. Alcohol consumption in pregnancy is one of the most frequent causes of mental retardation and is also related to other developmental risks such as malformations, growth retardation, low weight, learning problems, and in important consumption during pregnancy babies who They are born with fetal alcohol syndrome.
And it is not only during pregnancy, but even from preconception. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) in the United States recommends not drinking a drop of alcohol not only for pregnant women, but for all women of childbearing age who do not use contraceptives.
Labeling of alcoholic beverages in Europe
Europe is the region of the world that consumes the most alcohol. Alcohol, as the World Health Organization (WHO) points out in a study, is the origin of more than 60 types of diseases, including cancer, cirrhosis and cardiovascular ailments. And as well noted in that report:
"Alcohol not only harms the consumer, but also those around him, the fetus in pregnant women, boys and girls, other family members and victims of crimes, violence and accidents due to drunk driving."
According to a report by the European Commission, on an audit of 60 retailers in 15 European countries regarding health-related messages that inform and educate the consumer on alcoholic beverage labels, only one in five alcoholic drinks Contains a health-related message on its label.
Countries that do include it in their tags
In Europe, France was the first member state to demand that consumers are informed about the dangers associated with alcohol consumption. Since 2006, it has been mandatory for alcoholic beverages that includes the following message: "the consumption of alcoholic beverages during pregnancy, even in small quantities, can have serious consequences on the child's health" or use a warning pictogram for pregnant women .
In the United States the phrase is included: "Women should not drink alcohol drinks during pregnancy due to the risk of birth defects".
Also in the United Kingdom, one of the countries most affected by this problem, the regulations require a warning for pregnant women in the form of a logo or the following sentence “Avoid alcohol if pregnant or trying to conceive”.
It is not mandatory in Spain
In Spain it is not mandatory that the labeling includes a health warning for pregnant women about the risks that alcohol consumption entails during pregnancy. Nor about health in general.
The Association of Families Affected by Fetal Alcoholism Syndrome has expressly requested that beverages be incorporated into the warning not to consume them during pregnancy. They have also claimed that part of the alcohol tax collected in Spain be reverted directly to affected children, whether for social or health aids or services.
The organisms ask for it
WHO, in a document on labeling of alcoholic beverages at European level, proposes that warnings be introduced on the labels of alcoholic beverages on the risks associated with alcohol consumption. Among them the risk of cirrhosis and cancer, driving vehicles, operating machinery and of course, the dangers of drinking alcohol during pregnancy.
The European Parliament has stated its intention to make it mandatory for the labeling of alcoholic beverages to include a warning about the risks of driving and pregnant women, as is already done in tobacco boxes.
For its part, Eurocare, an alliance of non-governmental and public health organizations that advocates for the prevention and reduction of alcohol-related damages in Europe, has also been asking for it since 2008. However, to the measure is mandatory at European level For all countries there is still a way to go.
Would it be of any use to use warning labels?
Raising awareness about the risks of alcohol in pregnancy never hurts, and starting to make it visible on labels is a way to do it.
According to WHO:
"There is a broad consensus in the literature that this information can improve knowledge, raise awareness and promote debate on the harmful consequences for the health of alcohol. In addition, no negative effects have been demonstrated. The relatively low effectiveness reported by the researchers seems to be mainly due to certain characteristics of the way information is currently presented, such as weak textual content, poor visibility and lack of pictorial content to illustrate the consequences of alcohol misuse. "
Knowing how harmful alcohol consumption is for the mother's health and especially for the development of the baby in gestation, alcoholic beverages They should carry a warning about the risks of drinking alcohol during pregnancy.
In Babies and more | Yes, it is still necessary to warn that if you are pregnant you should not drink alcohol, Too Young to Drink ', a shocking campaign to prevent fetal alcohol syndrome
