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STUDY: Mixed Effects Of Smoking During Pregnancy

Posted on: Sunday, 14 September 2008, 17:30 CDT

Researchers reported on Friday that mothers who smoke during pregnancy may increase the risk of having children with lower birthweights, but smoking doesn’t appear to have any affect on other areas of development.

The large study of almost 53,000 children born in the US during the 1960s confirmed a long acknowledged link between smoking during pregnancy and a higher risk of low birthweight.

Additionally, researchers noted some evidence that children born to smoking mothers were more likely to be overweight by age 7 than those born to non-smoking mothers.

Although researchers are unsure about the cause of the link, some theorize that nicotine may affect the developing brain in a way that influences appetite control later in life.

What’s more, scientists reported no findings of any direct link between smoking during pregnancy and various developmental problems.

Upon first glace at the data, researchers noted some associations between smoking during pregnancy and various developmental problems. However, those links disappeared after researchers factored in the family environment -- such as parents' income and education, and whether the child lived with both parents.

They concluded that a child’s home environment has a greater impact on physical and cognitive development than being born to mothers who smoke.

"Smoking still causes cancer; smoking still causes heart disease, And we still find a strong effect of smoking on birthweight, and we know that low birthweight can have negative consequences," said Dr. Stephen Gilman, of the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston.

Gilman and his colleagues based their findings on data from a study that followed 52,919 U.S. children from birth to age 7. During pregnancy, their mothers reported on their smoking habits; and also provide information on family income, marital status, education, family history of mental illness and other factors that could affect their children's development.

Gilman noted that the study included more than 2,000 sets of siblings whose mothers had smoked during one pregnancy but not the other. If maternal smoking, itself, affects children's IQ, school performance and other aspects of development, then differences should be apparent among these siblings.

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On the Net:

• Harvard School of Public Health

Source: redOrbit Staff & Wire Reports

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