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Pharmacology of Alcohol Relating to Pregnancy and Lactation

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Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Effects

Abstract

The main intoxicant in alcoholic beverages is ethyl alcohol (alcohol, ethanol), a relatively simple organic chemical, made up of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen, that is soluble in both water and fat. The various other ingredients in alcoholic beverages are called congeners. Different alcoholic beverages contain different types and different amounts of congeners and other substances, e.g., minerals, coloring agents. About 400 different ingredients have now been identified.1 Some of the more common of the congeners are acetaldehyde, iso-amyl alcohol, iso-butanol, n-propanol, ethyl acetate, and methanol. Although some congeners may produce toxic or pharmacological effects on the fetus, thus far little attention has been focused on this possibility. Relevant studies of this issue are discussed in Chapter 9.

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  1. Research Institute on Alcoholism, Buffalo, New York, USA

    Ernest L. Abel

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© 1984 Ernest L. Abel

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Abel, E.L. (1984). Pharmacology of Alcohol Relating to Pregnancy and Lactation. In: Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Effects. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-2669-4_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-2669-4_2

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4612-9662-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4613-2669-4

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