Drinking Alcohol During Pregnancy Causes Conduct Problems In Children
Posted on Thu Nov 08, 2007
A recent report in the Archives of General Psychiatry has revealed that women who drink alcohol during their pregnancies are more likely to give birth to children with conduct problems than women who do not consume alcohol while they are pregnant. Brian M. D'Onofrio, who conducted the research study in Indiana University collected and analyzed data from 4912 mothers in 1979. After the survey, he assessed women about their substance abuse on a yearly basis as well as looked for behavioral problems in their children.
The study found that conduct problems in children increased for every additional day of the week when their mothers consumed alcohol. This link was made even after factors such as the mother's educational level, intellectual ability etc. were considered.
D'Onofrio in his report wrote that prevention efforts should continue to stop mothers from consuming alcohol during their pregnancies. In previous years, research has found maternal drinking to cause several problems such as criminal behavior, attention and impulsivity problems, alcohol disorders, as well as conduct problems. However, questions were raised regarding the strength of the evidence, as some researchers believed that conduct and behavioral problems could be associated with genetic factors.