title: Prenatal alcohol exposure selectively enhances young adult perceived pleasantness of alcohol odors.
abstract: Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) can lead to life-long neurobehavioral and social problems that can include a greater likelihood of early use and/or abuse of alcohol compared to older teens and young adults without PAE. Basic research in animals demonstrates that PAE influences later postnatal responses to chemosensory cues (i.e., odor & taste) associated with alcohol. We hypothesized that PAE would be related to poorer abilities to identify odors of alcohol-containing beverages, and would alter perceived alcohol odor intensity and pleasantness. To address this hypothesis we examined responses to alcohol and other odors in a small sample of young adults with detailed prenatal histories of exposure to alcohol and other drugs. The key finding from our controlled analyses is that higher levels of PAE were related to higher relative ratings of pleasantness for alcohol odors. As far as we are aware, this is the first published study to report the influence of PAE on responses to alcohol beverage odors in young adults. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that positive associations (i.e., "pleasantness") to the chemosensory properties of alcohol (i.e., odor) are acquired prenatally and are retained for many years despite myriad interceding postnatal experiences. Alternate hypotheses may also be supported by the results. There are potential implications of altered alcohol odor responses for understanding individual differences in initiation of drinking, and alcohol seeking and high-risk alcohol-related behaviors in young adults.
authors.affiliation: Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute for Child and Family Development, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, United States; Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, United States; Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, United States; C.S. Mott Center for Human Growth & Development, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, United States. Electronic address: j.hannigan@wayne.edu.
authors.forename: John H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Hannigan
authors.affiliation: College of Nursing, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, United States.
authors.forename: Lisa M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Chiodo
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, United States; C.S. Mott Center for Human Growth & Development, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, United States.
authors.forename: Robert J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Sokol
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine & Public Health Sciences, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, United States.
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Janisse
authors.affiliation: Carman and Ann Adams Department of Pediatrics, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, United States.
authors.forename: Virginia
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Delaney-Black
mesh_terms: D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000503:physiopathology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010465:Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011581:Psychological Tests; D012903:Smell / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders