How is alcohol misuse affecting the children of parents who drink?

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We don’t have accurate statistics on the numbers of children living with alcohol misusing parents. It’s estimated that 79,000 babies in England are living with a parent who is classified as a ‘problematic’ drinker (‘hazardous’ or ‘harmful’). The Office of the Children’s Commissioner has published a Rapid Evidence Assessment about the impact that alcohol misuse [read the full story…]

SSRI antidepressants increase the risk of major abnormalities in pregnancy

This huge review suggests that there are several effective treatment choices for generalised anxiety disorder across classes of medication.

A large observational study from Finland has found that women who drink alcohol and take selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor antidepressives (SSRI) during the first trimester of pregnancy significantly increase their risk for foetal alcohol spectrum disorders.  The study also found an increase in risk for some major congenital malformations associated with the use of SSRIs during the first [read the full story…]