Why doctors are alarmed by the rise of drinking during pregnancy

The notion of consuming alcohol during pregnancy might sound like an outdated joke: A grandmother who drank beer to nourish her fetus or another who had a nightly martini for better sleep—actions that seem unimaginable in today’s U.S.

Despite significant declines over the past 50 years, alcohol consumption during pregnancy in the U.S. began rising again about a decade ago. According to STAT’s analysis of 2024 government data, more than 1 in 8 pregnant adults reported drinking in the past month, making it more prevalent than gestational diabetes. Among those who drank, a quarter admitted to binge drinking—consuming four or more drinks in a single session—within the previous month.

Although the U.S. has lower rates of alcohol use during pregnancy compared to several peer nations, its impact is evident among Americans. Alcohol is largely responsible for what are considered some of the country’s leading neurodevelopmental disorders: fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, or FASDs.

Determining the precise prevalence of FASDs is challenging, but recent federally funded community studies suggest that up to 1 in 20 school-aged children may suffer from such disorders due to prenatal alcohol exposure. In contrast, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that about 1 in 31 American children is affected by autism, according to recent figures.

Researchers note that not every fetus exposed to alcohol develops birth defects or intellectual disabilities. However, they emphasize that each individual with an FASD has been specifically harmed by alcohol. There is concern that this crucial point is being overlooked as Americans increasingly challenge the standard medical advice to avoid alcohol entirely during pregnancy.

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