Social dysfunctions in human beings with FASD are apparent early in life with altered sleep patterns, increased irritability, and feeding difficulties during infancy (244). Similarly, neonatal rats exposed to ethanol in the early postnatal period (gastronomy PND 2–12) take longer to attach to the nipple and spend less time suckling than controls (245), emit more vocalizations on PND 5 when separated from the dam after pre- and postnatal ethanol exposure [intubation GD 1–22 and PND 2–10 (246)] and are not retrieved by the dam as quickly as unexposed pups [drinking water GD 0–30 (247)]. These negative early life experiences can play a role in shaping social development long term.
