French magistrates are currently considering whether manufacturers of alcoholic beverages may be prosecuted because they do not warn pregnant women of the dangers of alcohol.

This initiative follows complaints by three mothers from Roubaix who gave birth to children with foetal alcohol syndrome. This may result in physical abnormalities, mental retardation and behavioural problems. The lawyer of the three mothers maintains that manufacturers of alcoholic beverages are aware of the risks for pregnant women. The lawyer, himself the son of a pediatrician specializing in alcohol syndrome, points out that two glasses a day or a consumption of five glasses in an evening is sufficient to trigger an irreversible syndrome. Alcohol consumption affects the central nervous system and the brain of the foetus. The symptoms may show either immediately at the time of birth, or at school attendance age as reading and writing difficulties, says the lawyer. Doctors estimate that 0.3% of the 700 000 babies born in France each year show signs of alcohol syndrome.

The lawyer is pressing for all alcoholic beverages to carry a warning about the dangers of alcohol during pregnancy. This is in fact already common practice for French wines exported to the USA.

The French Minister of National Health reacted by stating his support for such information. He announced that a campaign would be launched to inform expectant mothers about the dangers of alcohol consumption.

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