Overview

• An INPer analysis of 894 cases found 98 women reported drinking during pregnancy, yet 81% were never asked about alcohol use and no formal screening was performed.
• Among those who disclosed drinking, only 23 were referred to mental health services, 2% continued after diagnosis, 19% received no follow-up, and most reported use around week 8.5 when many first learn they are pregnant.
• At the First International Congress on TEAF, specialists reiterated that no amount of alcohol is safe during pregnancy or lactation and detailed brain, placental, genetic and epigenetic damage from exposure.
• New Mexico data presented at the congress included a 12.3% prenatal exposure rate detected by biomarkers in Guadalajara and reported consumption in 71.5% of a Monterrey sample of pregnant adolescents.
• Experts urged routine use of AUDIT/ASSIST screening, wider biomarker surveillance across care settings, provider training and coordinated programs, citing global exposure estimates near 10% and substantial lifelong social and health burdens.