Alcohol is one of the very first things to go once you see that positive pregnancy test.  A lot of expecting moms have questions about alcohol. Trying to figure out guidelines for alcohol and pregnancy can be so confusing.  Can you drink any alcohol during your pregnancy?  Does it affect your baby?  How much is okay?  These are questions you may have asked your doctor or midwife and you usually get one of two answers.  You hear, absolutely no alcohol, in any quantity, or, it’s okay to enjoy a glass of wine from time to time with a meal.  When you drink alcohol it is absorbed through your stomach and small intestines and enters your blood stream. Once it is in your blood stream it goes to your heart, brain, muscles, and other tissues.  If you are pregnant, it is also going to your placenta and then gets passed to your baby through the umbilical cord. You already know that drinking high amounts of alcohol is a bad idea. What about an occasional drink? This episode is going to get into all of the details on alcohol and pregnancy, how it affects your baby, and what the research says about drinking when you are pregnant.