How Parenting Affects Alcoholic Women

One Mom's Confession

• Stefanie Wilder-Taylor, author of "Sippy Cups Are Not for Chardonnay: And Other Things I Had to Learn as a New Mom," and parenting expert for NBC TV's "Today" show, explains in a heart-felt blog entry how she went from social drinking to problem drinking, and lets her readers in on her motivation for correcting the problem. She explains that her motivation for giving up drinking alcoholic beverages was love for her husband and her three small children.

Drinking, Pregnancy and Children

• Jane M. Healy, author of "Your Child's Growing Mind," suggests that both potential parents should refrain from drinking before conception. However, according to Web MD, when the mother drinks excessively during pregnancy, the baby might develop fetal alcohol syndrome. FASD can manifest in a variety of ways including mental retardation, small head size or facial deformation. Alcohol ingested by nursing mothers is then consumed by the infant during nursing, according to La Leche League. Mothers Against Drunk Driving takes the stance that while driving and drinking is criminal, driving and drinking with a child in the car is child abuse.

Families and Alcoholism

• According to an article in the "Courant" (formerly the "Hartford Courant"), a Yale University study found that girls are more vulnerable than boys to long-term effects of having an alcoholic parent. If her father was the drinker, a daughter stands a 25 percent increased risk for becoming a problem drinker; if it was her mother, the risk rate goes up to 50 percent. Sons of alcoholic mothers have a greater chance of developing bipolar disorders or having panic disorders. The researchers were unsure why the statistics seemed to play out that way, and advised that this was an area where more studies were needed.

Use, Abuse and Dependency

• "Module 10B: Women and Alcohol," a handout published in 2005 by the National Institute on Alcohol and Alcohol Abuse, examines risks, potential problems and health issues concerning women and alcohol. The circular points out that alcoholism has been traditionally considered to be a man's disease, and that this view has masked examination of the effects of alcohol on women. A newer publication by the institute, "Women and Alcohol," points out that any alcohol consumed has a greater impact on women because of body size and differences in metabolism. It presents guidelines for limits on safe use of alcoholic beverages for both men and women, while pointing out that some medications interact badly with alcohol.

Mothers Who Drink

• Excessive alcohol consumption can not only have a detrimental effect on your health, but will adversely affect your ability to be a good parent. Alcohol releases inhibitions, allowing you to act in ways from which you might have otherwise restrained yourself. Researchers at DrugFree.org have found a correlation between recorded instances of sudden infant death syndrome and holidays that traditionally include drinking. Imagine for a moment the grief and guilt you would feel if your child became part of those statistics. Let that be your motivation for following Stephanie Wilder-Taylor's example of becoming an alcohol-free parent.