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- May 10, 2012
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Can't sleep? It could be because your mother drank during pregnancy: Alcohol consumption can 'damage slumber for life'
Insomnia? Exposure to alcohol in the womb may make it harder to sink into a deep, restorative slumber in adulthood
If you slept poorly last night, it may not be your fault.
Research suggests that what your mother drunk before you were born has long-lasting effects on your sleep.
Specifically, exposure to alcohol in the womb may make it harder to sink into a deep, restorative slumber in adulthood.
And just one binge on booze during pregnancy could be enough to do the damage, the journal Neuroscience reports.
US researchers studied the behaviour of adult mice that had been injected with a single dose of pure alcohol a week after birth.
Differences in how the mouse and human brain develop mean this was equivalent to a woman bingeing on booze in the last three months of her pregnancy.
The mice that had been exposed to alcohol got less slow-wave sleep.
This type of sleep is key to turning the day’s events into long-lasting memories and is also particularly restorative.
The alcohol-exposed mice were also more likely to be hyperactive and to suffer memory problems.
And the less slow-wave sleep they got, the worse their memory.
While the study was in mice, the New York University researchers believe it is relevant to humans.
As many as one in 100 people is believed to suffer from foetal alcohol spectrum disorder – a variety of impairments caused by exposure to alcohol in the womb.
These include learning difficulties, hyperactivity, clumsiness and short-term memory problems.
The scientists said some of these problems may arise brain regions involved in regulating sleep failing to develop properly in the womb.
Researcher Professor Donald Wilson said: ‘We have known for a long time that sleep fragmentation is associated with impaired cognitive function, attention and emotional regulation.
‘Our study shows for the first time that binge alcohol exposure early in life results in long-lasting slow-wave sleep fragmentation, which, in turn, is associated with learning problems.’
Drinking pregnancy is already linked to an increased risk of miscarriages, still births and birth defects.
And with experts divided over how much is too much, the NHS advises mothers-to-be avoid alcohol all together.
In a recent study, a third of British women questioned admitted to binge drinking early in their pregnancy.
However, just one per cent drank later in pregnancy – suggesting most women give up when they realise they are pregnant.
Just one binge on booze during pregnancy could be enough to do the damage, New York researchers warn
- Exposure to alcohol in womb may make it harder to sink into a deep sleep
- And alcohol exposure made hyperactivity, memory problems more likely
- Just one binge on booze during pregnancy could be enough to do damage
Insomnia? Exposure to alcohol in the womb may make it harder to sink into a deep, restorative slumber in adulthood
If you slept poorly last night, it may not be your fault.
Research suggests that what your mother drunk before you were born has long-lasting effects on your sleep.
Specifically, exposure to alcohol in the womb may make it harder to sink into a deep, restorative slumber in adulthood.
And just one binge on booze during pregnancy could be enough to do the damage, the journal Neuroscience reports.
US researchers studied the behaviour of adult mice that had been injected with a single dose of pure alcohol a week after birth.
Differences in how the mouse and human brain develop mean this was equivalent to a woman bingeing on booze in the last three months of her pregnancy.
The mice that had been exposed to alcohol got less slow-wave sleep.
This type of sleep is key to turning the day’s events into long-lasting memories and is also particularly restorative.
The alcohol-exposed mice were also more likely to be hyperactive and to suffer memory problems.
And the less slow-wave sleep they got, the worse their memory.
While the study was in mice, the New York University researchers believe it is relevant to humans.
As many as one in 100 people is believed to suffer from foetal alcohol spectrum disorder – a variety of impairments caused by exposure to alcohol in the womb.
These include learning difficulties, hyperactivity, clumsiness and short-term memory problems.
The scientists said some of these problems may arise brain regions involved in regulating sleep failing to develop properly in the womb.
Researcher Professor Donald Wilson said: ‘We have known for a long time that sleep fragmentation is associated with impaired cognitive function, attention and emotional regulation.
‘Our study shows for the first time that binge alcohol exposure early in life results in long-lasting slow-wave sleep fragmentation, which, in turn, is associated with learning problems.’
Drinking pregnancy is already linked to an increased risk of miscarriages, still births and birth defects.
And with experts divided over how much is too much, the NHS advises mothers-to-be avoid alcohol all together.
In a recent study, a third of British women questioned admitted to binge drinking early in their pregnancy.
However, just one per cent drank later in pregnancy – suggesting most women give up when they realise they are pregnant.
Just one binge on booze during pregnancy could be enough to do the damage, New York researchers warn
