Brewery funds alcohol awareness campaign for pregnant women
Multinational brewer Diageo has pledged over £4m to a training programme which is to be run by the National Organisation on Foetal Alcohol Syndrome.
The funds will go towards face-to-face and online training for an estimated 10,000 midwives over the next three years, allowing them to reach around 1.3 million pregnant women.
According to a 2005 Infant Feeding Survey over a third of mothers gave up drinking completely during their pregnancy, 61 per cent drank less and 4 per cent did not alter their drinking habits at all.
Current government guidelines recommend that mothers-to-be avoid alcohol where possible especially during the first trimester, after which drinking one or two units per week is considered safe.
The British Medical Association (BMA) are just one of many organisations who consider Diageo’s funding to be misplaced and a conflict of interest, but Simon Litherland, managing director of Diageo has stressed that the scheme is something the company feels very passionately about.
Whatever Diageos motives may be, educating midwives and mothers about the issues that can arise from drinking whilst trying to conceive or whilst pregnant is hugely important and could save babies from being born with foetal alcohol syndrome.
Public Health minister, Anne Milton, said: “Midwives are one of the most trusted sources of information and advice for pregnant women. This pledge is a great example of how business can work with NHS staff to provide women with valuable information.”
If you are trying to conceive or are pregnant and struggling to reduce your alcohol consumption then it may be worth talking to a hypnotherapist about how they could help you overcome a lifelong habit of frequently drinking alcohol. Visit our alcohol abuse fact-sheet for further information or visit the homepage and use the search tool to locate a qualified professional in your local area.
View the original Independent article.