Effects of prenatal alcohol exposure on social behavior in humans and other species

Abstract

Alcohol exposure during development causes central nervous system alterations in both humans and animals. Although the most common behavioral manifestation of these alterations is a reduction in cognitive abilities, it is becoming increasingly apparent that deficits in social behavior may be very prevalent sequelae of developmental alcohol exposure. In infancy and early childhood, deficits in attachment behavior and state regulation are seen in both alcohol-exposed people and animals, suggesting that these changes are largely the result of the alcohol exposure rather than maternal behavior. In the periadolescent period, people exposed to alcohol during development show a variety of difficulties in the social domain as measured by checklists filled out by either a parent or teacher. Rats exposed to alcohol during development show changes in play and parenting behaviors. In adulthood, prenatal alcohol exposure is related to high rates of trouble with the law, inappropriate sexual behavior, depression, suicide, and failure to care for children. These high rates all suggest that there may be fundamental problems in the social domain. In other animals, perinatal alcohol exposure alters aggression, active social interactions, social communication and recognition, maternal behavior, and sexual behavior in adults. In conclusion, research suggests that people exposed to alcohol during development may exhibit striking changes in social behavior; the animal research suggests that these changes may be largely the result of the alcohol insult and not the environment.

Exposure to environmental and lifestyle factors and attention-deficit / hyperactivity disorder in children — A review of epidemiological studies

“…Maternal alcohol use during pregnancy contributes to a range of effects in exposed children, including hyperactivity and attention problems, learning and memory deficits and problems with social and emotional development [87,88]. Evidence from animal studies suggests that even a single binge exposure is sufficient to produce neurotoxic effects [89][90][91].…”

Infant irritability: The impact of fetal alcohol exposure, maternal depressive symptoms, and low emotional support from the husband

“…Researchers have proposed a link between prenatal alcohol exposure and infant irritability (Burd, Klug, Martsolf, & Kerbeshian 2003;Clifford, Campbell, Speechley, & Gorodzinsky, 2002;Coles & Platzman, 1993;Scher, Richardson, Coble, Day, & Stoffer, 1988) mediated by subtle neuronal dysfunctions (Kelly, Day, & Streissguth, 2000). In the most severe cases, maternal drinking leads to fetal alcohol syndrome, which is diagnosed when three criteria are met: (a) growth deficiency in both the prenatal and postnatal periods, (b) structural anomalities and/or functional deficits in the central nervous system associated with mental retardation and behavioral problems, and (c) a distinctive pattern of abnormal facial features (Sokol & Clarren, 1989).…”

Intragastric Intubation of Alcohol During the Perinatal Period

“…Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is the leading known cause of preventable mental retardation in the Western world (1), and animal models have been instrumental in isolating alcohol as a teratogen and describing behavioral and neural deficits induced by alcohol (2,3). Animal models of FASD are currently being used to conduct translational research directed towards delineating possible behavioral (e.g.…”