The results of the present study, combined with the existing literature, indicate that FHP women do not have as pronounced a low response to alcohol as FHP men, suggesting that there may be differences in the heritability of alcoholism between men and women. Unfortunately, the existing literature is complex and inconsistent. While previous studies have shown that the genetic predisposition of alcohol use disorders is increased among both men and women with alcoholic parents (Merikangas, 1990; Kendler et al., 1994, 2003; Prescott et al., 1997), other studies suggest that the risk of developing an alcohol problem is still lower among FHP women (e.g., Cloninger et al., 1981; Heath et al., 1999), with environmental factors playing a greater role than inheritance among FHP women (Heath et al., 1989; Pickens et al., 1991; Sigvardsson et al., 1996). In contrast, others report that FHP women are more likely to experience adverse consequences, including problems with alcohol, as a result of their genetic risk (Akerman and Gondolf, 1991; Curran et al., 1999). More recent studies show that 1) FHP women with premenstrual symptoms drink
