This systematic review explores how prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) and traumatic childhood experiences intersect to influence a child’s cognitive, emotional, and behavioural development. The researchers examined five primary studies that looked at the impacts of PAE, childhood trauma, or both together, highlighting how these experiences, each harmful on their own, may compound when they co-occur. Across the literature, children with both exposures were more likely to experience difficulties in language, attention, memory, and social functioning, as well as more pronounced behavioural challenges. Although the evidence base remains small and methodologically limited, the review reinforces what many professionals see in practice: children with complex developmental histories often present with multilayered needs that require equally nuanced, relationship-based approaches.
Reflection for FASD Instructional Coaches
This research reinforces something Instructional Coaches see every day: many students with PAE have also lived through trauma, and the combination can shape how they learn, relate, and cope at school. Challenges with language, attention, memory, and regulation often reflect both neurodevelopmental differences and early experiences, not willful behaviour.
For coaches, the key takeaway is the importance of consistent, relationship-based support. When school teams focus on predictability, connection, and reducing stress, students are better able to engage and participate. In practice, this means helping educators shift from reacting to behaviours to understanding them, and making small, steady adjustments that create safety, belonging, and stability for learners with complex histories.