[ChristinaRizkallah]

Thanks for your explanation. Yes, I did read that if alcohol is consumed at certain times (such as third trimester) it can have an adverse effect on the fetus because apparently the fetus does most of its brain development in the third trimester. The possibility may be miniscule, but since I am naturally paranoid to begin with, I would just abstain completely!

Originally Posted by trakgrl99

Hey Christina! I'm hoping someone hasn't answered this already because I haven't read past your post yet...

FAS is considered a no-threshold effect,much like cancer is, because research hasn't been able to pinpoint any kind of concrete dose which triggers a response in the fetus (the response being FAS). The theory is that FAS can POTENTIALLY occur with very low doses of alcohol, providing that dose is administered at the most opportune time in a fetus' development and taking into account that this particular fetus is ultra-sensitive to alcohol. Cancer is the same way: one molecule of a known carcinogen can potentially start the pathway which may ultimately lead to a tumor. This is unlike, say, ibuprofen, where we KNOW 100-250 mg is the most common and general dose we know of that will produce the desired effect of reducing pain. Ibuprofen has a threshold ("X" amt produces an effect). Nobody really knows what the effects of "X" milliliters of alcohol will do to any given fetus. Some fetuses may be able to handle multiple doses of alcohol in high concentrations, others may be ultra sensitive to alcohol and one shot of buttershnapps runs the risk of brain damage. There's no known threshold, or lowest dose, at which FAS occurs. We just know it's a developmental toxin, hence the prop 65 warnings on alcohol bottles. But again, this is most relevant in the beginning of the third trimester when the baby's brain is taking shape.

Again, I hope that makes sense. I totally geeked out there! :-) I hope I'm not scaring you, Jes! Like I mentioned before, the alcohol would all be cooked out of the marinade, so you're fine!