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Alcohol use is common in the United States. In 2020, 54.2% of adults age 18 and older reported drinking in the last month.1 Among female adults age 18 and older, 66.9% reported consuming alcohol in the last year and 51.2% reported any alcohol use in the past month.1 An estimated 9% of women have an alcohol use disorder.1 Approximately 18% of reproductive-age women (18–44 years) binge drink (defined as consuming four or more standard drinks in about 2 hours for women).2,3 Concerningly, analysis of data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) collected between 2011 and 2018 suggests that alcohol consumption during pregnancy is increasing.4 Recent analysis of 2018–2020 BRFSS data indicates that 13.5% of pregnant adults reported current drinking and 5.2% reported binge drinking, and these numbers are likely an underestimation.4,5 Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs) are a range of life-long developmental conditions associated with exposure to alcohol during pregnancy.6 These conditions include fetal alcohol syndrome, partial fetal alcohol syndrome, alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder, alcohol-related birth defects, and neurobehavioral disorder associated with prenatal alcohol exposure.7,8 According to recent estimates, up to 1 in 20 schoolchildren in the US may have FASDs.9 The impact of such alcohol exposure can result in changes in brain development, manifesting as impaired neurocognitive function, poor executive functioning, attention deficits, and memory impairment, among other outcomes.7,9 Additionally, prenatal alcohol exposure can result in adverse birth outcomes such as premature birth and low birth weight.10 In an effort to reduce the number of alcohol-exposed pregnancies, 43 states have implemented legislation targeting alcohol use among pregnant people. This brief report summarizes the current status of these policies.

Publication Date

4-13-2023

Keywords

alcohol, state-based policies, heatlh, pregnancy

Handle

http://hdl.handle.net/11122/14687

State-based policies on alcohol use during pregnancy

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