Tier 1 is exposure to alcohol before pregnancy, Tier 2a is the face of a child exposed to alcohol throughout pregnancy, and Tier 2a is the face of a child exposed to alcohol throughout pregnancy. The red area represents changes inside the surface, and the blue area represents changes outside the surface. Provided by Human Reproduction
Research has shown that drinking alcohol during pregnancy from 3 months before pregnancy has a negative effect on the shape of the child’s face, such as the length of the nose and the direction of the chin. Even alcohol consumed before pregnancy can lead to abnormal fetal facial development, so it is considered another reason to stop drinking alcohol in preparation for pregnancy.
The research team led by Professor Gennady Roshupkin at Erasmus Medical Center Rotterdam in the Netherlands published a study using artificial intelligence (AI) and deep learning technology to analyze the relationship between prenatal alcohol exposure and the shape of a child’s face. Published in ‘Production’.
Drinking alcohol during pregnancy is known to cause fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) in the fetus. Babies born with FASD are more likely to suffer from reduced intelligence, learning difficulties, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and language delays. Little is known about the effects of alcohol consumption on the ‘facial development’ of the foetus.
The research team used AI and deep learning to analyze three-dimensional images of 9 (3149) and 13 (2477) children and developed an AI-based algorithm that creates 200 unique features from facial features. They also developed a ‘heat map’ to show the children’s facial features associated with maternal alcohol consumption.
Information on maternal alcohol intake was obtained from questionnaires completed by mothers during early, mid and late pregnancy. The research team included mothers who did not drink alcohol before or during pregnancy (control group), mothers who drank alcohol during the 3 months before conception but stopped after conception, and mothers who drank alcohol during during pregnancy (mothers who drank alcohol only during pregnancy). first 3 months of pregnancy and throughout pregnancy) mothers who drank throughout the day were divided into three groups.
As a result of the analysis, the research team found a statistically significant link between exposure to alcohol before birth and the shape of the face of 9-year-old children. A sharp nose tip, shorter nose, protruding chin, and weak eyelids appeared as the mother drank more alcohol during pregnancy, including three months before conception.
When mothers who drank before conception but stopped after pregnancy were compared with mothers who drank throughout pregnancy, the above characteristics were stronger in the faces of children born to mothers who drank throughout pregnancy. For mothers who drank alcohol throughout pregnancy, even if they drank as little as 12 grams per week, alcohol consumption was found to influence the formation of certain facial features in their children.
These characteristics appear to weaken as 9-year-olds reach 13 years of age.
“Although facial features due to alcohol exposure may diminish or be masked by growth patterns as children grow, depending on environmental factors, this does not mean that the health effects of alcohol will disappear,” said Professor Roshupkin. established for this, it is desirable to stop drinking alcohol even before pregnancy.”
