Originally published September 27 2005
Prenatal alcohol exposure can affect central nervous system later on
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Scientists have discovered, in a study of monkeys, that babies who are exposed to even moderate amounts of alcohol before birth may have altered function of the brain's dopamine system later in life, which could lead to a range of problems, including everything from addiction and memory loss to attention difficulties.
Writing in the current issue (Sept. 15, 2005) of the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, a team of researchers led by Mary L. Schneider, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor of occupational therapy and psychology, reports that when a monkey exposes her fetus to alcohol by drinking, the dopamine system of her offspring is altered.
Effects on that key neural system, according to the study's results, can manifest themselves up to five years after birth, when the monkeys are fully grown.
The influence of alcohol on the dopamine system, depending on the timing of exposure during gestation, varies, says Schneider, but illustrates yet another biological consequence of drinking while pregnant.
"It appears that there is no safe time to drink," says the Wisconsin researcher.
The new study, conducted at UW-Madison's Harlow Center for Biological Psychology, looked at the effects of moderate drinking on the offspring of three groups of pregnant rhesus macaques, each of which were provided access to moderate amounts of alcohol during various stages of gestation.
Working with UW-Madison professor of medical physics Onofre DeJesus, Schneider's group used PET scans to assess the function of the dopamine system of the adult monkeys exposed to alcohol in utero.
Dopamine is a key chemical messenger in the brain, helping it perform an array of functions ranging from simple movement to cognition to facilitating feelings of enjoyment and motivation.
In the new study, Schneider's group used positron emission tomography or PET on the now-grown monkeys to evaluate the interplay of dopamine receptors and enzymes at work in the system.
In the last 30 years, scientists have come to understand that exposing the fetus to alcohol, the drug most widely abused by pregnant women, leads to a host of health and development issues, including low birth weight, facial deformities and mental retardation.
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