Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 3, 2025

Moderate Prenatal Alcohol Exposure and Quantification of Social Behavior in Adult Rats
Published on: December 14, 2014
Prenatal alcohol exposure and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder independently predict greater substance use in
Neil C Dodge1, Joseph L Jacobson1,2, Leslie H Lundahl1
1Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, Michigan, USA.
Background:
The degree to which prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) may influence alcohol and drug use in adulthood is difficult to determine. That is because PAE is highly correlated with environmental factors, including low socioeconomic status and exposure to parental drinking, and with behavioral problems, such as, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which are correlated with alcohol use and abuse.
Methods:
Participants were 121 young adults from our Detroit Longitudinal Cohort study. Mothers were recruited during pregnancy and interviewed about their alcohol consumption using a timeline follow-back procedure. At 19 years, their offspring were interviewed regarding current and past use of alcohol, cigarettes, and other illicit drugs.
Results:
PAE was associated with greater alcohol, cannabis, and cigarette use. PAE, assessed using overall alcohol intake during pregnancy and alcohol dose per occasion, was associated with larger quantities of alcohol per occasion and greater alcohol tolerance in early adulthood. These effects persisted after control for demographic background, sex, age and education of participant, home environment, other prenatal drug exposure, and postnatal alcohol and drug use by the primary caregiver. Whereas ADHD predicted average alcohol consumed/month during young adulthood, PAE predicted alcohol dose/drinking occasion, and the effect on dose/occasion was not mediated by ADHD.
Conclusions:
The effects of PAE on alcohol and cannabis use in young adulthood are not attributable to being reared in an environment that is socioeconomically disadvantaged or in one in which there is extensive maternal drinking. Furthermore, PAE was related to enhanced alcohol tolerance in young adults, a risk factor for alcohol use disorder later in life. Although ADHD was associated with greater alcohol consumption in early adulthood, it did not mediate the effect of PAE on offspring's alcohol use.
More Related Videos
19:57The Use of Trace Eyeblink Classical Conditioning to Assess Hippocampal Dysfunction in a Rat Model of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
Published on: August 5, 2017
15:27Construction of Vapor Chambers Used to Expose Mice to Alcohol During the Equivalent of all Three Trimesters of Human Development
Published on: July 13, 2014
Related Concept Videos
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
Diagnostic Criteria and Symptoms
To diagnose ADHD, symptoms must manifest before age 12 and be evident across multiple settings....
Substance Use Disorders Affecting Sleep
Understanding the concepts of physical dependence,...
Stress and Mental Health
Individuals with depression often experience challenges in both their personal and professional...
CNS Depressants: Alcohol and Nicotine
Drug Abuse and Addiction: Pharmacological Phenomena
Human Genetics
The complex relationship between genetics and psychology is observable through common biological components such...