Can you drink Guinness when pregnant?
Hannah Weiss
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Find out if it's safe to drink Guinness and other types of alcohol during pregnancy. Plus, precautions to take to keep you and your baby healthy.
The official advice on whether you can drink Guinness in pregnancy
No, Guinness is not considered safe to drink in pregnancy.
The NHS advises that if you're pregnant or trying for a baby, the safest approach is not to drink any alcohol at all. This includes Guinness and other types of beer and lager as well as wine and spirits.
Guinness Draught is a type of Irish stout. It contains 4.1% ABV, while Guinness Original contains 4.2%. That's more than two units of alcohol per pint.
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Alcohol-free Guinness may be safe to drink during pregnancy, when it's released later this year. But check with the manufacturer or your midwife if you're worried.
Is Guinness good for you?
In the 1920s a famous ad campaign claimed that Guinness had health benefits for pregnant women. The idea came from market research – when people told the company that they felt good after enjoying their pint.
Stout was also thought to be a good source of iron, which would be beneficial for pregnancy and breastfeeding. In reality, Guinness only contains 0.3mg of iron – a tiny amount.
There is some truth to the rumours – research shows that beer can help to prevent heart disease in people who aren't pregnant. Stouts like Guinness are brewed with malted barley. This is rich in antioxidants called polyphenols, which can boost the body's natural defences against cancer and degenerative diseases.
However, the alcohol content in Guinness ultimately makes it unsafe to drink during pregnancy.
You may have heard stories about doctors prescribing Guinness to pregnant women back in the day. However, there are similar stories about doctors prescribing cigarettes to pregnant patients, once upon a time! We know know much more about how alcohol and tobacco affect pregnancy, which is why it's strongly advised that you avoid both while you're pregnant.
What about alcohol-free beer?
If you enjoy drinking beer and want to benefit from its healthy properties, you could try an alcohol-free option. However, always take care to check the alcohol content when choosing your drink.
At the time of writing, there's no alcohol-free Guinness on the market, though you may be able to find a substitute stout. Guinness do plan to release their 0.0% version back onto the market later this year though. Since it contains no alcohol at all, it will probably be safe to drink during pregnancy, but do check the pack for any warnings first.
If you want to have an alcohol-free beer, always check the label to make sure there's absolutely no alcohol before you try it. Look for a beer that says 0.0% ABV on the pack.
In the UK, drinks that are labelled as "alcohol free" can contain up to 0.05% ABV, so may still have traces of alcohol. Similarly, "de-alcoholised" drinks can contain up to 0.5% ABV – 10 times stronger than "alcohol free" drinks.
In other parts of the world, like the US and European countries, "alcohol free" drinks can contain up to 0.5% ABV. So be cautious and check the percentage first to find out whether it's really alcohol-free.
Why can't I have alcohol in pregnancy?
The Chief Medical Officers for the UK strongly advise that you cut out alcohol completely while you're pregnant. This is because experts are unsure how much alcohol, if any, is safe to drink.
When you drink alcohol, it passes through the placenta to your baby. Your growing baby can't process alcohol yet, because the liver is one of the last organs to develop, and won't mature until the later stages of your pregnancy.
This means that drinking alcohol while pregnant could have a serious impact on your baby's development. Sadly, drinking alcohol can increase the risk of miscarriage, low birthweight and premature birth. There's also some research to suggest that drinking when pregnant could also lead to behavioural and learning difficulties in your child as they grow.
If you're worried about cutting out alcohol, you can talk to your midwife, who'll be able to give you advice and support.
Pregnancy-safe drink recipes
If you're cutting out alcohol, why not try these pregnancy-safe drinks?
- Elderflower fizz
- Berry spring cooler
- Summer sparkle mocktail
- Avocado and banana smoothie
- Glowing mojo-ito green monster
The Day-by-Day Pregnancy Book: Count Down Your Pregnancy Day by Day by Dr Maggie Blott is packed full of advice from a team of experts to help guide you through your pregnancy from conception to birth. See more details here at Amazon.
Looking for more pregnancy diet info? Check out our articles below, or swap tips with other mums-to-be in our forum.
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