Adaptive behavior, sleep, and physical activity in adolescents with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.
Organized sports are linked to stronger daily living skills in teens with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Hammond et al. (2022) looked at 48 teens with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.
They measured daily living skills, sleep quality, and physical activity for one week.
Kids wore wrist trackers and parents filled out rating scales.
What they found
Teens with FASD scored low on adaptive behavior across all areas.
Poor sleep was common.
But teens who played organized sports had better daily living skills than those who did not.
How this fits with other research
Weinmann et al. (2023) adds a warning: teens with more brain-based problems face more foster home moves.
This extends Leah's work by showing why better skills matter for staying in one home.
Doney et al. (2016) found younger kids with FASD already struggle with fine motor tasks.
Together these papers trace a line: motor problems start early, grow into broader adaptive delays, and can lead to placement breakdowns.
Meier et al. (2012) and Coffey et al. (2021) show kids with Down syndrome and autism also fall short on fitness.
Leah's finding that sport helps FASD teens fits this bigger picture: physical activity may boost skills across different disabilities.
Why it matters
If you work with teens who have FASD, ask about sports.
Signing a kid up for soccer, swim team, or even a running club could lift daily living skills.
Track sleep too—fixing bedtime routines might give you extra gains.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is broadly associated with impairments to adaptive behavior and dysfunctional sleep. Associations between sleep, adaptive behavior, and physical activity are frequently drawn in discussions of typical development and other clinical conditions. AIMS: In this study, we sought to characterize patterns of sleep, adaptive behavior, and physical activity in adolescents with FASD. We also investigated the associations between sleep, adaptive behavior, and physical activity within this population. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Twenty-seven adolescents aged 11- to 17-years with a diagnosis of FASD and their caregivers participated in this study. All participants completed parent and youth questionnaires on adaptive behavior, sleep, and physical activity. OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: Adolescents with FASD displayed significant impairments to all domains of adaptive behavior and considerable sleep disturbance. Worse sleep was associated with older age and sleep-related breathing disturbances were associated with poorer social adaptive behavior. Participation in physical activity, particularly organized sport, was strongly associated with better adaptive behavior. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Adolescents with FASD experience considerable challenges with regards to sleep and adaptive behavior. Physical activity, particularly organized sport, may provide opportunities for the improvement of adaptive behavior in this population.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2022 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2022.104366