Prenatal alcohol exposure and risk of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in offspring: A retrospective analysis of the millennium cohort study

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the relationship between prenatal maternal alcohol consumption and the risk of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), the strengths and difficulties questionnaire (SDQ) score and abnormal hyperactivity score in seven-year-old children.

Methods: This study is a retrospective analysis of the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS). Questionnaires were used to gather data on gestational alcohol consumption when children were 9 months old and neurodevelopmental outcomes in offspring at 7 years of age (N = 13,004). Alcohol consumption was classified into never, light, moderate and heavy. Crude and adjusted logistic regression models were used for data analysis.

Results: The total number of women who reported drinking alcohol in pregnancy (the light, moderate and heavy drinking group) was 3916 (30.1%). No significant association was found between light, moderate or heavy gestational alcohol consumption and ADHD (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] for light = 0.80, 95% confidence interval [CI] = [0.53,1.22], aOR for moderate = 0.83, [0.40, 1.74]; aOR for heavy = 1.27, [0.54, 2.98]); for abnormal SDQ score (aOR for light = 0.94, [0.78,1.13], aOR for moderate = 0.70, [0.49,1.00]; aOR for heavy = 1.08, [0.70, 1.66]); for abnormal Hyperactivity score (aOR for light = 1.02, [0.89,1.17]; aOR for moderate = 1.05, [0.82, 1.34]; aOR for heavy = 0.90, [0.62, 1.32]), in offspring.

Conclusion: Light, moderate or heavy antenatal alcohol consumption was not associated with an increased susceptibility to ADHD or behavioural outcomes in this study. However, due to the limited number of cases we cannot rule out an increased risk of ADHD in relation to heavy alcohol consumption.

Keywords: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); Maternal alcohol consumption; Pregnancy.