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UrduIncreased alcohol use among pregnant and postpartum women during the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with autonomic nervous system dysregulation, known to negatively affect resilience to change and further exacerbate the risk of stress-related mental health disorders and substance use, a new study suggests. The findings, although preliminary, underline the potential for a new clinical biomarker and novel personalized mobile health apps in facilitating treatment interventions. Previous research linked the pandemic to increased stress levels and drinking, including in pregnant and postpartum women. Alcohol use, and stress-related conditions such as depression and anxiety, are associated with dysregulation in the feedback loop between the body and the brain. This process involves the peripheral autonomic nervous system, which regulates the heartbeat. Healthy, resilient people tend to have higher heart rate variability than people with stress and substance use disorders. Heart rate variab
Tag: drinking during pregnancy
Pregnant Women’s Alcohol Use is Linked to Partners’ Drinking
Pregnant women’s alcohol use is correlated with their partners’ drinking, according to a large European study — and partners are unlikely to meaningfully reduce or halt their alcohol consumption while expecting a baby. The findings may offer a new way of identifying women at risk of drinking in pregnancy and potentially intervening to prevent or reduce harm. Alcohol consumption during pregnancy can seriously impair fetal health and development, causing stillbirth and lifelong disabilities. These include fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs), the primary cause of non-genetic cognitive disability worldwide. Although the drinking patterns of women and their partners are known to be correlated, little attention has been given to partners’ alcohol use during pregnancy and how this may affect women’s drinking and pregnancy outcomes. For the study in Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, investigators searched for associations between pregnant women’s and their partners’ alcohol us
Friends’ Drinking is Linked to Alcohol Use Among Teen and Young Adult Mothers
Friends’ drinking behaviors may be key to risky drinking among pregnant teens and young adults, according to a new study. Researchers used a previously untried approach to examine the ways that adolescents’ and young adults’ alcohol use and beliefs before they become pregnant related to their drinking as they entered into motherhood. Young mothers may be particularly vulnerable to moderate or heavy drinking during pregnancy, with adverse outcomes for their babies. Understanding the factors that influence risky alcohol use in pregnancy (3+ drinks per occasion) is important for identifying and supporting at-risk teens and young adults. The study in Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research may be the first to use data collected before pregnancy, minimizing inaccurate recall.