Drinking While Parenting?
Does having a baby drive parents to drink? Maybe! According to The Drinks Business website new survey finds that parents may be drinking more alcohol after the birth of their first child:
The survey, released on behalf of 4Children, found that 17% of parents drink more alcohol than usual after their first baby is born, while 40% of new parents make no effort to cut down on their drinking…
…The survey found that more women admitted to drinking more after their first child was born, with 22% saying they increased their alcohol intake. Fathers drink more frequently with 40% saying they drank a few times a week, compared to 28% of mothers and 13% of new fathers admitted to drinking every day, compared to 4% of mothers.
Can’t say I’m super surprised. If you look at my mom-heavy Twitter feed, you’ll find a whole lot of moms grabbing a glass of wine after the kids are in bed. Including yours truly, here.
I get that drinking can be a major problem. And I appreciate the group behind the study wanting to make sure that parents are safe and responsible in their alcohol use. But there’s so much this study doesn’t say that I’m not freaking out about it. It doesn’t say how much parents drink, what time of day they’re drinking, how much money they spend on alcohol, if they’re having trouble at home or work because of drinking. It just says that new parents drink. Yeah, that may be bad. Or it may be utterly benign.
If you are a new mom who wants a drink, use some common sense. I’m breastfeeding so don’t drink unless I have more than two hours before I need to nurse. I also only drink if there’s another adult capable of driving with me. And I usually wait until the kids are asleep before having a drink, though I did have a beer with dinner recently. And I only ever have one drink because I want to be alert enough to respond appropriately in an emergency.
If you do have an issue with alcohol abuse or someone in your family does, please get help. Your local health department should be able to connect you with resources.
Do you drink now that you’re a parent?
Source – The Drinks Business
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I have a glass of wine after my 9 month old is in bed a few times a week, but I think I definitely cut back on my drinking since she’s been born. We brew our own beer and often have get togethers where that’s what people are doing–tasting out home brews. Like you, I limit myself to one drink so that I can respond to her if I need to. Lets be honest though, sometimes after a l.o.n.g. day with a crying baby, a glass of wine can really help you relax and recoup.
I would really like to know how the questions were phrased. I absolutely drink more now that the baby is born — because I didn’t drink anything for 9 months! It’s also a little hard to remember exactly how much I drank before I got pregnant (along with so many things…), so I could totally see myself under reporting that, making my current consumption appear to be higher in comparison.