Alcohol and Pregnancy – Who needs research?

This article in the Guardian was sent to me by a friend who thought I would be interested in what it had to say. In short it is promoting the use of light alcohol consumption during pregnancy based on the results of a study published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology by Kelly et al. 

It states that those who drink low levels of alcohol during pregnancy are no more likely to have childen with behavioural or cognitive problems than those who do not drink alcohol. It even infers that those who consume low levels of alcohol may be better off but as this was not statistically significant they cannot state it – however, they should not even be inferring it and to do so is irresponsible and defeats the purpose of doing statistical analysis. 

However, I ask the question – do we really need research to answer this question? Do we really need to spend money, time and effort to answer a question we all innately know the answer to? 

As far as the human body is concerned, alcohol is a poison, a toxic substance that causes harm to our cells and organs. There is no safe level of alcohol consumption as far as cancer is concerned as previously reported on this blog. If anyone has ever had a hangover, then they too know that the body has been harmed and poisoned by the consumption of alcohol and hence why it fees so rotten. We should only ever need one hangover to know that alcohol is harming to us. Yet we don’t listen to the wisdom of our own body – we ignore it, override it, deny it and make all sorts of excuses for carrying on poisioning ourselves: I know, having done it myself many times. Thus I speak from experience of living on both sides – the alcohol consumer and the alcohol abstainer. In doing so, there is no judgment on anyone who chooses to drink alcohol – that would be highly hypocritical to say the least. However, having walked on both sides (or perhaps staggered on one!) I am deeply aware how and why we get trapped by this substance and all the so-called ‘norms’ around it. 

In light of the over-whelming evidence of the toxicity of alcohol to human cells – why do we even need to consider performing research on the consumption of alcohol during pregnancy? It is a no-brainer that the healthy option is abstinence. A little bit of poison is still poison – energetically it doesn’t suddenly become non-toxic just because there is less of it.  If a substance is toxic to a part, it is toxic to the whole – the whole cannot be well, if the part is not well. If it is harming to the Mother, and it is, then it will be harming to the foetus also. We are in deep illusion if we think that we can consume something that is just harmful to a part of us but does not affect the whole of us. 

Indeed, many pregnant women innately know that alcohol is harming and stop drinking during pregnancy. It is interesting to note that whilst they are willing to stop drinking for the health of their child, they were not previously willing to stop for their own health! The love and care for their unborn child exceeds the love and care they have for themselves. It is of course great to expose this and it can lead to great healing opportunities to consider what underlies the desire to numb, harm and poison oneself. In my experience, there are usually hurts and wounds buried within, that we are perhaps in denial of or unwilling to feel – because they hurt! Lack of self-worth, self-loathing, self-hatred can all underlie the persistent need to numb oneself. Not being enough, exhaustion and depletion such that we look for the sugar boost, ‘treat’ or ‘reward’ through alcohol may also occur.

We stay away from feeling those hurts and wounds and deeper hidden yucky feelings as part of us feels they are true, that we are not good enough, not lovable, not worthy etc etc. But these are all false, all lies. Esoterically and energetically we are pure love in essence. By connecting with this essence, knowing and accepting it is there, it gives us the space and freedom to feel those unwanted feelings. Freedom comes when we feel and release these buried hurts and wounds and realise we are not those hurts or wounds nor are we defined by them but that underneath all of that gunk there is the amazingness and awesomeness of the Love that we are. Instead of running away from them, we say ‘bring it on’, let me feel the ‘what is not’, the ‘what I am not’ no matter how ugly or horrible it may feel, because, underneath we know without doubt there is a deeper truth; that we are divine and glorious vehicles of Love. 

In my opinion, it is irresponsible to promote or encourage alcohol consumption during pregnancy in any way. Studies have shown that smokers during pregnancy for example have epigenetic effects on the DNA of their children that affects them later in life. The more we come to know about epigenetics, where environmental factors affect genetic expression, I am sure we will find out more and more about how what is consumed during pregnancy affects the genetic expression of the unborn child and causes changes in later life we are not yet aware of.  Whilst there are many useful ways that research may be employed to help mankind and answer as yet unanswered questions – it is not required to answer the question, “is there a safe level of alcohol consumption during pregancy?” The answer is already known – innately in our own bodies and is a simple no. Of course research can help to elucidate the detail of how it harms, the cellular and epigenetic effects for example but let us not kid ourselves that we do not know IF it harms. For those who do need research and do not trust the wisdom of their own body, ponder on this – how can there be no safe level of alcohol consumption when it comes to cancer, yet it can be considered safe in pregnancy?  

Disclaimer: As a medical professional I support the use of scientific research to aid our understanding and unfolding development and this post is not ‘anti-research’ in general.  This post refers specifically to the question of whether alcohol is safe to consume during pregnancy and I am proposing in this blog that it is not needed to answer the global question of IF it is safe or not, as there is already enough research on the effects of  alcohol in the human being to answer this globally, along with our own innate wisdom. I fully appreciate of course that research can assist us in knowing the details, the pathways, the mechanisms etc by which alcohol harms the human being. 

Feel free to share your experiences or comment on anything this article arises for you.