Avoid alcohol throughout your pregnancy — actually, from a few months before you plan to start trying until after your baby is born. Consuming alcohol raises the risk of various pregnancy issues, including miscarriage, complications during labor, preterm birth, low birth weight and even stillbirth. Another concern is that your baby could be born with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), which can impact your baby throughout life. FAS can cause serious problems, including heart defects, failure to thrive, epilepsy, mental retardation, behavioral problems, structural abnormalities of the face and limbs, and growth problems.