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Preconception Substance Use: A Call to Raise Awareness of Potential Adverse Effects
Kirsten A. Oinonen* and Meghan RichardsDepartment of Psychology, Lakehead University, Canada
- *Corresponding Author:
- Dr. Kirsten Oinonen
Department of Psychology, Lakehead University
955 Oliver Road, Thunder Bay, Ontario, P7B 5E1 Canada
Tel: (807) 343 8096
Fax: (807) 346 7734
E-mail: koinonen@lakeheadu.ca
Received June 23, 2012; Accepted June 26, 2012; Published June 28, 2012
Citation: Oinonen KA, Richards M (2012) Preconception Substance Use: A Call to Raise Awareness of Potential Adverse Effects. J Addict Res Ther 3:e108. doi:10.4172/2155-6105.1000e108
Copyright: © 2012 Oinonen KA. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Abstract
Although a great deal of behaviour change still needs to occur, North American society shows signs that there is a growing realization and acceptance of the knowledge that substance use during pregnancy can cause irreversible brain damage and harm to the fetus. However, the general public does not seem to be aware of the research suggesting that one’s life history of substance use prior to conception may also adversely affect one’s future children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren [1-3]. For example, most women do not stop using alcohol until they know they are pregnant [4,5] and a Canadian study examining women’s beliefs about the preconception period suggested that only 38% of respondents believed that women should stop alcohol use in the preconception period and only 28% believed that men should do the same.
