The Brief Addiction Science Information Source (BASIS)

The WAGER, Vol. 20(6) – The ties that bind: Parent-child bonds among pathological gamblers and matched controls

Addiction often develops when someone who has a combination of antecedents, such as genetic, environmental, and psychological risk factors repeatedly interacts with an object of addiction, like gambling (Shaffer et al., 2004). One key antecedent of addiction might be the kind of bond children have with their parents. In this week’s WAGER, as part of our Special Series on Motherhood and Addiction, we summarize a recent study that examined the relationship between parental bonds during childhood and pathological gambling later in life (Villalta, Arévalo, Valdepérez, Pascual, & de los Cobos, 2015). Methods Researchers used a retrospective case-control study design to... Read more →

STASH, Vol. 11(5) – The rise of maternal opioid abuse and its impact on opioid treatment admissions

Editor’s Note: Kelly Abrams Johnson is a special contributor to The BASIS and is a graduate student in the Department of Health Education and Promotion at East Carolina University. Dr. Ryan Martin served as a guest editor. Dr. Martin, formerly of the Division on Addiction, is now Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Education and Promotion at East Carolina University. During the past decade, there has been a significant increase in maternal opioid abuse and neonatal abstinence syndrome (Pan & Yi, 2013; Patrick et al., 2012). However, researchers have not examined how these changes have impacted opioid treatment admissions... Read more →

Maternal substance abuse: Exploring mother-infant relationships and brain responses

Editor’s Note: This Op-Ed/Editorial was written by Udita Iyengar, M.Sc., a PhD candidate at the University College London Department of Psychology. This piece is part of our month-long Special Series on Motherhood and Addiction. Motherhood is often described as a unique, remarkably challenging and rewarding experience. The maternal brain goes through a series of changes to prepare and assist the mother in adequately and promptly responding to her infant. In addition, a mother’s own experiences in childhood and relationships with her caregivers may set a template for when she becomes a mother, whereby she may repeat patterns with her own... Read more →

ASHES, Vol. 11(5) - Where there’s smoke, risk is higher: Smoking during pregnancy and nicotine dependence in offspring

People whose mothers smoked during pregnancy have an increased risk of becoming nicotine dependent themselves (Buka, Shenassa, & Niaura, 2003). Some believe that this risk is due to changes that occur in a baby’s brain while in the womb (Kardia et al, 2003), but it could also result from social forces, such as children modeling their mothers’ smoking habits. In this week’s ASHES, as part of our Special Series on Motherhood and Addiction, we review a study that examined possible physiological links between prenatal exposure to smoking and future nicotine dependence. Methods The researchers used data from interviews with pregnant... Read more →

Addiction during pregnancy: How can specialists balance maternal autonomy and fetal health?

Editor’s Note: This Op-Ed/Editorial was written by Marjorie Meyer, MD, a Maternal Fetal Medicine subspecialist at the University of Vermont Medical Center. This piece is part of our month-long Special Series on Motherhood and Addiction. Healthy Mom = Healthy Baby. As a maternal fetal medicine subspecialist (an obstetrician who cares for high risk pregnancy), this is the motto. The interdependence of the health of the mother and baby is most apparent during pregnancy, but extends through the life of each individual after birth. So why are we at a time when fetal rights seem to be at odds with maternal... Read more →

Introduction to the Special Series on Motherhood and Addiction

Mothers share a physical and emotional bond with their children that begins well before birth. Most of the time, this bond nourishes both the mother and the child. Unfortunately, the maternal bond can also transmit addiction and other harmful health conditions. This month, we mark Mother’s Day by paying special attention to research that explores precisely how addiction can spread from mother to child. We start with a study of prenatal alcohol exposure and the long-term effects of this exposure on children’s sensitivity to alcohol. Later on, we explore how a mother’s smoking creates special health risks for her child,... Read more →

DRAM Vol. 11(5) – Stop and smell the 200 proof: Prenatal alcohol exposure and young adult alcohol sensitivity

Babies exposed to alcohol in the womb are at risk for having growth defects and neurological problems (e.g., Streissguth, Barr, & Sampson, 1990). Children exposed to alcohol prenatally also begin drinking alcohol earlier than others (Baer, Sampson, Barr, Connor, & Streissguth, 2003). However, the exact pathway between prenatal alcohol exposure and early onset drinking is unclear. It could be that prenatal exposure to alcohol changes children’s sensitivity to alcohol, which might be reflected in perceptions of smell. This week, as part of our Special Series on Motherhood and Addiction, we review a study that investigated how children with prenatal alcohol... Read more →