The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released an Infographic on the risks of drinking for women last Tuesday as part of their Vital Signs Report. The data displays the risks of drinking alcohol when pregnant. The data also claims that drinking 8 drinks a week, or binge drinking can lead to injuries/violence, STDs, and unintended pregnancies for women, among many other risks, without discussing any other contributing influences.
The audience is doctors, nurses, and other health professionals as the lower half of the poster shows a 5-step guide for helping women avoid drinking too much.
The goals are to show women (or their health professional who will pass on the information) that drinking holds many risks during pregnancy and the general risks of drinking, although the risks are not attributed to anything except for drinking which is absurd.
A small portion of the data displayed effectively shows the risks of drinking while pregnant, which seems to be the main message of the poster. A quote supporting this is on the lower half of the poster that suggests that women trying to get pregnant should avoid drinking alcohol. The biggest problem is half of the data shown on the top half of the poster does not suggest women who are trying to get pregnant should drink less, which is legitimate considering the risks shown when a women becomes pregnant. The poster instead suggests that women use birth control when drinking, insinuating that because women can have children; they are to be held accountable for the risks of drinking, which is why this poster has become so controversial.
