New guidelines issued by the Department of Health say that women who are pregnant or wish to conceive should totally abstain from drinking alcoholic beverages, this replaces previous advice which recommended not more than one or two units of alcohol once or twice a week and to avoid getting drunk.
In 2006 the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit was commissioned by the Department of Health to review all evidence on the effects of alcohol on the developing embryo, foetus and child, while the unit found that there was no consistent evidence that low to moderate consumption of alcohol during pregnancy has any adverse effects, there was some evidence that binge drinking could affect development of the foetus especially in the neural area.
It is estimated by the National Organisation on Foetal Alcohol Syndrome that there are more than 6,000 children born in the UK each year with Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder.
