Study Suggests Special Occasion Drinking during Pregnancy May Cause Harm

Another interesting finding was that insulin-resistance was sex-specific, occurring only in the male rats. There are a couple of potential reasons for this, one being that during pregnancy, the placenta adapts to a prenatal stress differently depending on if it’s a male or female fetus, and this can impact on fetal growth and development.

The other factor is hormone changes as offspring grow into adulthood. In this case, oestrogen protects against insulin-resistance, and because males don’t have high oestrogen, they don’t experience the same protection.

Commenting on the study University of Queensland researcher Lisa Akison, senior author on the study, said:

“Even a small amount of alcohol during pregnancy can be harmful, so if you’re planning on getting pregnant don’t drink. Families, partners and friends should support a woman’s choice not to drink alcohol during pregnancy. If a woman accidentally becomes pregnant, and unknowingly drinks alcohol during the first part of their pregnancy, the important thing once they know is to stop drinking, have a good diet and take care of themselves throughout the remainder of the pregnancy.”

Contacts and sources:
Julia Turan,
The Physiological Society

Citation: Prenatal alcohol exposure programs offspring disease: Insulin resistance in adult males in a rat model of acute exposure https://physoc.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1113/JP278531