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Associations Between Depressive and Anxious Symptoms and Prenatal Alcohol Use

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Abstract

Symptoms of depression and anxiety are prevalent during pregnancy and may influence women’s health behaviors. The impact of women’s mental health on alcohol use may be particularly important to consider as prenatal alcohol use is common and may have serious negative consequences for the developing fetus. The objectives of this study were to investigate the relationships between elevated symptoms of depression and anxiety and subsequent likelihood of any alcohol use and binge drinking during pregnancy. The sample consisted of 12,824 women from a prospective, population-based study from the United Kingdom, the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. Participants completed questionnaires assessing alcohol use and depressive and anxious symptoms during the first and third trimesters of pregnancy. A series of multivariable regression models was fit using multiply imputed data. Thirty four percent of women reported having at least one alcoholic drink at 32 weeks’ gestation and 17% reported binge drinking. We found a weak association between elevated symptoms of anxiety and any alcohol use but not between elevated symptoms of depression and any alcohol use. Modest associations were found between both elevated symptoms of depression and anxiety at 18 weeks’ gestation and binge drinking at 32 weeks’ gestation. Elevated symptoms of depression and anxiety may increase risk for binge drinking during pregnancy. Further research into the impact of symptoms of depression and anxiety on binge drinking during pregnancy is needed as this could represent an opportunity for public health intervention.

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Acknowledgments

We are extremely grateful to all the families who took part in this study and the whole ALSPAC team. The UK Medical Research Council (Grant ref: 74882), the Wellcome Trust (Grant ref: 076467), and the University of Bristol provide core support for ALSPAC.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, 200 North Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD, 21287, USA

    Julie A. Leis

  2. School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol, 39 Whatley Road, Bristol, BS8 2PS, UK

    Jon Heron

  3. Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health, 624 North Broadway, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA

    Elizabeth A. Stuart & Tamar Mendelson

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  1. Julie A. Leis
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  4. Tamar Mendelson
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Correspondence to Julie A. Leis.

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Leis, J.A., Heron, J., Stuart, E.A. et al. Associations Between Depressive and Anxious Symptoms and Prenatal Alcohol Use. Matern Child Health J 16, 1304–1311 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-011-0892-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-011-0892-8

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