Drinking during pregnancy may significantly increase the risk your child may develop drinking problems in later life, according to researchers in the US.
A team from the University of Washington in Seattle examined thedrinking patterns of 1,529 women who were in mid-pregnancy between November 1974 and October 1975. Then a 433 offspring, aged 21 years, were asked to rate how often and how much alcohol they consumed.
Close to 83% per cent of the offspring said they were current drinkers and 8% indicated at least mild alcoholic dependence symptoms. The report said that univariate and multivariate analyses revealed that pre-natal alcohol exposure was significantly associated with alcohol problems in offspring at 21 years of age.
It went on to say that the link remained even after other factors such as family environment and family history were controlled for.
“Pre-natal exposure to alcohol at varying levels and at different periods during gestation is known to affect a variety of physical and functional developmental processes, many of which could place an individual at risk for alcohol use disorders,” the report said.
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By GlobalData
