U.S. — A report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that 15% of adult pregnant women reported consuming alcohol in the prior 30 days between 2021 and 2024. This figure represents an increase from the 13.5% of adult pregnant women who reported alcohol consumption in the 30 days prior, as documented between 2018 and 2020.
CDC report authors stated, "Alcohol consumption during pregnancy remains a public health concern. Both clinical and community interventions might help." The report notes that individuals who were unmarried or experienced frequent mental distress were more than twice as likely to report binge drinking and heavy drinking compared to pregnant women without these characteristics. Clinical guidelines define binge drinking for women as consuming four or more drinks within a two-hour period, while heavy drinking is defined as consuming four or more drinks on a single day.
Ethanol, a component of alcohol, is a known cause of birth defects and can affect nearly every stage of fetal development. Federal estimates indicate that fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are more common than autism, and ethanol is a leading driver of intellectual disability in the U.S. Clinical guidelines state that no amount of alcohol has been proven safe for a developing fetus. The CDC recommends that individuals who might become pregnant or are trying to conceive stop drinking alcohol.
The CDC report states that routine screening for alcohol consumption and mental health conditions during pregnancy could reduce drinking rates. The report also identified point-of-sale warning signs and alcohol sales taxes as potential measures. The national survey on pregnancy drinking habits did not ask respondents to specify their pregnancy trimester.
The Department of Health and Human Services has not published 2023 data concerning alcohol consumption during pregnancy and the postpartum period. Reductions in CDC staffing have suspended regular updates to the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System. The system’s website currently directs researchers to contact individual state health departments to access data.
No independent assessment was available for this report.