Teen Mom OG star Maci Bookout recently announced her third pregnancy, her second with fiancé Taylor McKinney, via Instagram post. But the timing of the picture has some of her fans offering more than just their congratulations.
“Baby boy coming soon!” Bookout announced on Valentine’s Day in an Instagram photo, which shows her kissing her fiancé on the cheek while they’re both holding her adorable (and noticeable) baby bump. While the couple’s announcement has been met mostly with warm wishes, some of their fans are speculating she may have been drinking alcohol while pregnant.
Bookout is reportedly due on May 30. This would put her at around 26 weeks pregnant. Some fans who follow her closely have done the math according to Bookout’s social-media timeline, and they’ve got some questions. If you look at her Instagram, she posted a picture of her orange and white checkered shoes alongside a Bud Light in her hand while watching the University of Tennessee football team play in the Outback Bowl. That game was on Jan. 1, when she would have been roughly 20 weeks pregnant.
There’s been a lot of speculation and mud-slinging in the press about this. People are alleging that Bookout has been knowingly consuming alcohol while pregnant. Social-media posts considered, this is an understandable assumption.
More: I’m married to a Marine, so why do I feel like a single mom?
However, as with most stories surrounding reality stars in the media, there is likely more to this story than meets the eye. Bookout has reportedly stated this pregnancy was a surprise and that she and her fiancé only recently found out she was indeed with child. Considering that some women never even know they’re pregnant until they’re in the emergency room about to deliver a surprise baby, Maci’s story might be true.
Her daughter isn’t even a year old yet. Most women who have had children know how haywire their bodies go before, during and after pregnancy, and many of us can attest to the fact that those changes can make spotting a pregnancy quite difficult. She may have been oblivious because her body hadn’t recovered fully from her last pregnancy, and some of those signs could have been disguised as the normal daily mysteries of a woman’s postpartum body.
More: Tyra Banks releases first photo of her brand-new baby
If it is true that she only recently found out, it’s safe to assume she had no idea there was any risk in having a few drinks during the show. And that happens. How many of us have had a little too much wine during the beginning weeks of pregnancy, only to find out weeks later that we were expecting? One in 10 women admit to having had a drink at some point in their pregnancy. It goes without saying that none of us would have ever been drinking had we known we were pregnant.
The studies go back and forth and back and forth on this, but while all the experts say women should not purposely drink while pregnant, there is some good news for moms who might have had a drink when they didn’t know they were expecting: Research shows the risk of fetal alcohol syndrome increases the more moms drink throughout the pregnancy. In other words, drinking once or twice before you know you’re pregnant means a much lower risk than someone who drinks consistently during pregnancy.
More: Heather Morris of ‘Glee’ welcomes baby with adorably preppy name
It’s also fair to note that in Bookout’s photos, she’s simply holding the Bud Light, not drinking it. And so far no study has found that simply being in proximity to alcohol will hurt your fetus.
Before you go, check out our slideshow below:
Leave a Comment