Drinking alcohol during pregnancy can affect not only your child but can also increase the chances in of developing alcoholism in next three generations, says a study in rats.
For the study, pregnant rats received the equivalent of a glass of wine – four days in a row – in 17-20 days gestation, the equivalent of the second trimester in humans.
Juvenile male and female offspring after drinking water or alcohol and boys investigated were tested for alcohol sensitivity by injecting a high dose of alcohol, which made them unresponsive and measuring the time and then they took time to recover their senses.
The findings, published in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, suggests that if a mother drinks during pregnancy, even if o slightly, the risk that the offspring will become alcoholic increases.
The team claims to be the first to investigate the effects of alcohol consumption during pregnancy and behavior related to alcohol in the generations that were not directly exposed to alcohol in the womb during pregnancy.
