Study links alcohol use to aggression

An IU study has found strong evidence that prenatal exposure to alcohol causes behavioral problems in children.\nResearchers looked specifically at mothers’ drinking during pregnancy, said Brian D’Onofrio, assistant professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences. D’Onofrio found that women who drank alcohol while pregnant had children with behavioral conduct problems. These conduct problems ranged from bullying to breaking things on purpose to aggressive behavior. \nThe study included analysis of data that were collected from a large representative sample of mothers in the U.S., D’Onofrio said. Carol Van Hulle, co-author of the study, said data for the study also came from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. The data used was a representative sample of adolescents ages 14 to 21 collected between 1986 and 2004. \nD’Onofrio said the group studied the findings in children exposed to alcohol, looking for behavioral conduct problems in children. He then compared the results to children not exposed to alcohol during gestation. \n“We were able to control the mothers’ drinking after pregnancy, and were able to rule out other factors,” D’Onofrio said.\nD’Onofrio said the study’s biggest strength was its ability to draw comparisons between siblings who were exposed to alcohol. \n“The study strongly suggests that alcohol exposure actually causes children to have more conduct problems,” D’Onofrio said. \nD’Onofrio added that in comparing siblings that were indirectly exposed, second-born children are much less likely to have conduct problems. \nD’Onofrio said an interesting finding of the study was that, although drinking alcohol is associated with attention and impulsivity problems, other risk factors during pregnancy contribute to these problems more than alcohol consumption itself does. \nBoth Van Hulle and D’Onofrio said the purpose of the study is to build support for public health messages urging pregnant women not to drink.