Prenatal Exposure to Alcohol Causes Impairment in Motor Skills: Study

Children born to women who drink alcohol during pregnancy have impaired motor skills, according to a study.

Fetuses' exposure to alcohol can lead to physical and mental deformities and even still births. Experts from the George Institute of Global Health in Sydney, Australia, found prenatal exposure to alcohol stunts balance, movement co-ordination and ball skills in children.

The researchers looked at  past 14 studies on fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) to examine the effects of alcohol on gross motor skills like sitting, rolling and standing up in children. They examined health statuses of children aged below 18 who had moderate to heavy alcohol exposure in the womb with that of children of non-drinking mothers. Mothers with moderate to severe alcohol addiction reported consuming nearly 10 drinks per week which was way beyond the minimum safety limit.

The study records revealed children with moderate to heavy exposure to alcohol during pregnancy were more likely to have impaired gross motor skills. The chemical components in alcohol affect the brain area related to voluntary movement and motor skills. As a result, these children mostly had low balance perceptibility, uncoordinated movement of the body and difficulty in playing with a ball.

"This is biologically plausible as alcohol is a teratogen which causes damage to the developing brain," Barbara Lucas, study author and researcher from the George Institute of Global Health told Reuters Health in an email. "Areas of the brain that may be damaged include those which are important for motor control."

However, the study could not determine what level of intake of alcoholic drinks can impact fetuses' brain and functioning. The authors urge mothers to stop drinking during pregnancy to avert long term health consequences.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, every year about 0.2 to 1.5 per 1,000 cases of FASD occur in the country. The average expenditure on health care for a person suffering from mental and physical disability due to FASD accounted for more than $4 billion annually in 2002.

More information is available online in the journal Pediatrics.