Trends in alcohol consumption during pregnancy in Australia, 2001–2010

  • Sarah Callinan Centre for Alcohol Policy Research Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre Eastern Health Clinical School Monash University
  • Jason Ferris The University of Queensland
Keywords: alcohol, pregnancy, survey,

Abstract

Callinan, S., & Ferris, J. (2014). Trends in alcohol consumption during pregnancy in Australia, 2001–2010. The International Journal Of Alcohol And Drug Research, 3(1), 17-24. doi:10.7895/ijadr.v3i1.108

Aim: The aim of the current study is to examine, using cross-sectional data, the role of maternal age, period (year of pregnancy) and cohort (year of birth) as predictors of alcohol consumption during pregnancy over a 10-year period.

Design: Four cross-sectional surveys were examined, both separately and together.

Setting: Using cross-sectional data, there does appear to be a positive relationship between maternal age and alcohol consumption during pregnancy; however, within any one survey period, it is difficult to determine if these patterns are due to period or cohort effects.

Participants: The National Drug Strategy Household Survey (NDSHS) is a large-scale survey administered to more than 20,000 respondents. Across four survey periods, 3,281 women reported being pregnant in the 12 months prior to the survey.

Measures: The section on pregnancy and alcohol in the NDSHS 2001, 2004, 2007 and 2010.

Findings: Age was a significant positive predictor of alcohol consumption during pregnancy in 2010. However, when the four data sets were combined, period appeared to be a stronger predictor, with younger groups and cohorts decreasing consumption at a faster rate over time than older groups and cohorts.

Conclusions: Although age and cohort do play a role in the likelihood of alcohol consumption among Australian women during pregnancy, period is the most important predictor, indicating that alcohol consumption among pregnant women is decreasing. Furthermore, knowledge of pregnancy results in a marked decrease in consumption, suggesting a possible focus for prevention campaigns.

Author Biographies

Sarah Callinan, Centre for Alcohol Policy Research Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre Eastern Health Clinical School Monash University

Research Fellow

Centre for Alcohol Policy Research

Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre

Jason Ferris, The University of Queensland
Institute for Social Science Research, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
ARC Centre for Excellence in Policing and Security, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
Published
2014-03-19
How to Cite
Callinan, S., & Ferris, J. (2014). Trends in alcohol consumption during pregnancy in Australia, 2001–2010. International Journal of Alcohol and Drug Research, 3(1), 17-24. https://doi.org/10.7895/ijadr.v3i1.108
Section
Papers