Alcohol consumption by pregnant women in the Western Cape.

OBJECTIVE: To assess alcohol use by pregnant women in three underprivileged areas of the Western Cape.
DESIGN: Data were collected from subjects, selected in a randomised manner, during a single, structured interview. SUBJECTS AND
SETTING: Interviews were conducted among pregnant women voluntarily attending selected antenatal clinics in the George/Oudtshoorn, Vredenburg/Saldanha, and Cape Metropole areas of the Western Cape. OUTCOME MEASURES: On completion of the interview, women at risk were counselled with regard to the dangers of prenatal alcohol exposure to the fetus.
RESULTS: 42.8% of the women in the sample admitted to varying degrees of alcohol ingestion during the current pregnancy. The reported alcohol intake of over 55% of these women, i.e. 23.7% of the sample, was sufficient to place their unborn children at high risk for the fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). These heavy drinkers followed a pattern of binge drinking over weekends and showed a marked preference for beer. Combined alcohol and tobacco use occurred in 29.6% of the sample. Only one subject admitted to using marijuana.
CONCLUSION: The data in this study confirm that a high rate of alcohol and tobacco use prevails among pregnant women in poorer communities of the Western Cape. Extrapolating from experience, as many as 9.5% of the sample may produce children with FAS.

RCT Entities:   Population Interventions Outcomes