Some fetuses are more vulnerable to alcohol than others, according to a recent study by the School of Medicine at Northwestern University published in the FASEB Journal.
Scientists investigated how some female drinkers can give birth to a healthy baby, while others gives birth to a child with physical, behavioral, or learning problems – known as fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.
According to their study, a gene variation passed from mother to son contributes to the fetus’ vulnerability to even moderate alcohol exposure by upsetting the balance of thyroid hormones in the brain.
“The findings open up the possibility of using dietary supplements that have the potential to reverse or fix the dosage of the thyroid hormones in the brain to correct the problems caused by the alcohol exposure,” said Eva E. Redei, senior author of the study.
“In the not-too-distant future we could identify a woman’s vulnerability to alcohol if she is pregnant and target this enzyme imbalance with drugs, a supplement or another method that will increase the production of this enzyme in the hippocampus, which is where it’s needed,” Redei said.
She also noted that efforts to educate pregnant women about the risks of alcohol consumption have not changed the percentage of children born with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.