You’re pregnant – so what is there for you to drink at the pub?

9:19am Thursday 26th June 2008

By Alicia Kelly

AS summer draws out, many of us dream of a warm evening, a pretty pub garden and a refreshing pint of cider or a chilled glass of wine.

Spare a thought then for a small group of Worcestershire mums-to-be who face the hotter weather with only the prospect of a flat cola or a lukewarm orange juice.

In all fairness, pubs these days do cater more for people who, for whatever reason, do not or cannot drink alcohol.

An array of fruity drinks, tonics and mineral waters have joined the traditional lemonade or cola offerings, but many are still super-sweet or fizzy.

Anne-Marie Coomber faces an even more reduced choice after being diagnosed with gestational diabetes, a form of the condition which affects pregnant women

Mrs Coomber, of Jacomb Close, Lower Broadheath, near Worcester, who is four-and-a-half months pregnant, said: “I have to monitor my sugar levels.

“I don’t have to worry about them going low but the problem is if I have too much sugar, I’m not absorbing all of it so the baby gets too much and grows too big.”

She said: “I’ve found a tea I like. I tend to stick to the teas but there’s only so much you can drink. When I’m out, all the J2Os and Britvics are out so it’s really water, that’s all. It’s so limited. I’ve given up because everything tends to have sugar in it.”

Beth Tripp, of Warndon Villages, who is four months pregnant, has an alternative solution.

She said: “The only thing I drink is lime and soda because it’s cheap and it doesn’t give me heartburn.

“Some soft drinks are really expensive. I think there is a distinct lack of drinks for pregnant women.”

“I’ve even tried the non-alcoholic wines and they are disgusting. They taste nothing like it.” However, for those who would like to enjoy a non or low alcoholic version of their favourite tipple, there may be some hope.

Two web-based businesses, the Lo No Company and The Alcohol Free Shop, claim to offer a variety of decent booze-free drinks.

Retired soldier Dale Hemming-Tayler started The Lo No Company in 2002 after he gave up alcohol for medical reasons.

The website – www.lono.co.uk – now provides more than 30 wines as well as nearly 20 other alcohol-free aperitifs and digestifs.

Mr Hemming-Tayler said one of his most popular wines was the Carl Jung Brut sparkling wine (£4.99), used as the stage champagne at the Piccadilly, Shaw and Birmingham Rep theatres and drunk by the BAR Formula One racing team.

The Alcohol Free Shop, set up in 2006, also offers non-alcoholic beer, cider and cocktail mixes, plus alcohol-free toiletries and chocolates from its website www.alcoholfree.co.uk.

The site also includes a calculator which tots up how many calories you consume in a week from alcohol.

Mrs Coomber said: “What I’m looking forward to is a glass of port and a large lump of stilton!”

* Kapuziner alcohol-free wheat beer (currently on special at £11.99 for 12 500ml bottles) From www.lono.co.uk or www.alcoholfree.co.uk

* Swedish Kopparberg non-alcoholic pear cider (from Waitrose, Tesco, Sainsbury, Asda and Morrison’s, £1.85 for 500ml).

* Cobra’s 0 per cent beer (also available from Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons.) Soft alternatives.

* Sanpellegrino sparkling fruit drinks from Waitrose (£3.69 for a six-pack of 330ml cans) and Carluccio’s restaurants (90p each).

* Long Island iced tea – with six Teadirect teabags, eight sprigs of fresh mint, two level tablespoons caster sugar and ice cubes.