Please cite this paper as: SkogerbøÅ, Kesmodel U, Wimberley T, Støvring H, Bertrand J, Landrø N, Mortensen E. The effects of low to moderate alcohol consumption and binge drinking in early pregnancy on executive function in 5‐year‐old children. BJOG 2012;119:1201–1210. Objective  To examine the effects of low to moderate maternal alcohol consumption and binge drinking in early pregnancy on children’s executive functions at the age of 5 years. Design  Follow‐up study. Setting  Neuropsychological testing in four Danish cities 2003–2008. Population  A cohort of 1628 women and their children sampled from the Danish National Birth Cohort. Methods  Participants were sampled based on maternal alcohol drinking patterns during early pregnancy. When the children were 5 years old, the parent and teacher forms of the Behaviour Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) were completed by the mothers and a preschool teacher. Parental education, maternal IQ, prenatal maternal smoking, the child’s age at testing, and the child’s gender were considered core confounding factors. The full model also included maternal binge drinking or low to moderate alcohol consumption, maternal age, parity, maternal marital status, family home environment, postnatal parental smoking, pre‐pregnancy maternal body mass index (BMI), and the health status of the child. Main outcome measures  The BRIEF parent and teacher forms. Results  Adjusted for all potential confounding factors, no statistically significant associations between maternal low to moderate average weekly consumption and BRIEF index scores were observed. In adjusted analyses, binge drinking in gestational week 9 or later was significantly associated with elevated Behavioural Regulation Index parent scores (OR 2.04, 95% CI 0.33–3.76), and with the risk of high scores on the Metacognitive Index assessed by the teacher (OR 2.06, 95% CI 1.01–4.23). Conclusions  This study did not observe significant effects of low to moderate alcohol consumption during pregnancy on executive functioning at the age of 5 years. Furthermore, only weak and no consistent associations between maternal binge drinking and executive functions were observed.

Objective To examine the effects of low to moderate maternal alcohol consumption and binge drinking in early pregnancy on behaviour in children at the age of 5 years.Design Prospective cohort study.Setting Neuropsychological testing in four Danish cities, 2003Danish cities, -2008 Population A total of 1628 women and their children sampled from the Danish National Birth Cohort.Methods Participants were sampled based on maternal alcohol drinking patterns during early pregnancy. When the children were 5 years of age the parent and teacher versions of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) were completed by the mothers and a preschool teacher, respectively. The full statistical model included the following potential confounding factors: maternal binge drinking or low to moderate alcohol consumption, respectively; parental education; maternal IQ; prenatal maternal smoking; the child's age at testing; the child's gender; maternal age; parity; maternal marital status; family home environment; postnatal parental smoking; prepregnancy maternal body mass index (BMI); and the child's health status.Main outcome measure Behaviour among children assessed by the SDQ parent and teacher forms.Results Adjusted for all potential confounding factors, no statistically significant associations were observed between maternal low to moderate average weekly alcohol consumption and SDQ behavioural scores (OR 1.1, 95% CI 0.5-2.3; OR 1.1, 95% CI 0.6-2.1 for the total difficulties scores) or between binge drinking and SDQ behavioural scores (OR 1.2, 95% CI 0.8-1.7; OR 0.8, 95% CI 0.6-1.2).Conclusion This study observed no consistent effects of low to moderate alcohol consumption or binge drinking in early pregnancy on offspring behaviour at the age of 5 years.

This study examines the prevalence of having sex as a means of satisfying one's partner among a random sample of 398 heterosexual couples with non-problematic, mild or manifest reduced sexual desire. Data collection was carried out by questionnaires. Two of three women and one of five men with manifest distressing reduced sexual desire had had obligatory sex. Among women with symptoms of mild reduced sexual desire, there was an association between obligatory sex and lack of acknowledgement of one's sexual needs, as well as a lack of communication with one's partner regarding how to be sexually pleased. In men with manifest reduced sexual desire there was an association between obligatory sex and discussion of one's sexual needs, and sexual fantasies with the partner. Thus, men with desire problems seem to communicate with their partner about their sexuality, whereas women seem not to talk with their partner about their sexual needs.

Objective To examine the effects of pre-pregnancy alcohol drinking on child neuropsychological functioning. Design Prospective follow-up study. Setting and population 154 women and their children sampled from the Danish National Birth Cohort. Methods Participants were sampled based on maternal alcohol consumption before pregnancy. At 5 years of age, the children were tested with the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence-Revised, the Test of Everyday Attention for Children at Five (TEACh-5), and the Movement Assessment Battery for Children (MABC).The Behaviour Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) were completed by the mothers and a preschool teacher. Parental education, maternal IQ, prenatal maternal smoking, child’s age at testing, child’s sex, and alcohol intake during pregnancy were considered potential confounders. Main outcome measures Performance on the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence-Revised, the TEACh-5, the MABC, and the BRIEF. Results Intake of 15-21 drinks/week on average prior to pregnancy was not associated with any of the outcomes, but intake of ≥22 drinks/week on average was associated with a significantly lower adjusted mean full scale IQ and lower adjusted means in overall attention and sustained attention score, but not in selective attention score or any of the BRIEF index scores or MABC scores. Conclusions Intake of ≥22 drinks/week before pregnancy was associated with lower mean full scale IQ, overall attention and sustained attention. Assessment of pre-pregnancy drinking provides additional information regarding potential prenatal alcohol exposure and its implications for child neurodevelopment.

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