Alcohol, PTSD, and the Leading Cause Of Preventable Birth Defects.

A new study has been released that shows alcohol use might increase trauma victims’ chances of getting post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Heavy drinkers are at an increased risk to have traumatic events like car accidents and domestic violence, but now research is showing that drinking may affect the brain’s “circuitry” and recovery speed.

According to Andrew Holmes, PhD, at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, “A history of heavy alcohol abuse could impair a critical mechanism for recovering from a trauma, and in doing so put people at greater risk for PTSD… The next step will be to test whether our pre-clinical findings translate to patients currently suffering from comorbid PTSD and alcohol abuse. If it does, then this could lead to new thinking about how we can better treat these serious medical conditions.”

In another study reported by the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Kathleen K. Sulik, PhD, reports, “We now know that maternal alcohol use is the leading known and preventable cause of birth defects and mental disability in the United States… Alcohol’s effects can cause a range of cognitive, developmental and behavioral problems that typically become evident during childhood, and last a lifetime.”