Drinking and doing drugs before you knew you were pregnant

OBGYN Anthony Chin, MD, explains the effects that drinking and doing drugs before you knew about your pregnancy have on your baby
Effects of Drinking and Drugs Before Knowing You Are Pregnant
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Drinking and doing drugs before you knew you were pregnant

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A lot of people are concerned about drinking or smoking early on in the pregnancy and to be honest with you, you get like a pass for the first month of pregnancy. Usually around 7-8 weeks of pregnancy the placenta forms and the mother has a vascular connection with the baby. Before that time, the baby is really a ball of cells kind of floating inside the uterus in which case there is no vascular connection. So anything that a mother ingests, drinks, or smokes actually doesn't get to the baby. So therefore in the beginning of the pregnancy nothing really affects the baby at all. After the placenta starts to form, then anything the mother drinks, or smokes ,or does, or takes actually can get to the baby. But for the first 30 days or so there's no effect to the baby at all.

OBGYN Anthony Chin, MD, explains the effects that drinking and doing drugs before you knew about your pregnancy have on your baby

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Anthony Chin, MD

Obstetrician & Gynecologist

Dr. Anthony Chin was born in Hollywood, CA and raised in Santa Monica, CA.  He was educated at UCLA and graduated with a BS in Molecular Biology.  Dr. Chin attended medical school at UCLA and finished his residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Cedars Sinai Medical Center.  Board certified in Obstetrics and Gynecology and published in peer reviewed journals, Dr. Chin is the  recipient of several research, patient satisfaction and teaching awards, and continues to be involved with the teaching of medical students and resident physicians.  He is happily married and has a three month old daughter named Alaia Rose. 

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Transcription: 
A lot of people are concerned about drinking or smoking early on in the pregnancy and to be honest with you, you get like a pass for the first month of pregnancy. Usually around 7-8 weeks of pregnancy the placenta forms and the mother has a vascular connection with the baby. Before that time, the baby is really a ball of cells kind of floating inside the uterus in which case there is no vascular connection. So anything that a mother ingests, drinks, or smokes actually doesn't get to the baby. So therefore in the beginning of the pregnancy nothing really affects the baby at all. After the placenta starts to form, then anything the mother drinks, or smokes ,or does, or takes actually can get to the baby. But for the first 30 days or so there's no effect to the baby at all.