Smoking during pregnancy related to behavioural problems in children

Recent research shows that women who smoke during pregnancy are much more likely to have children with behavioural problems because of harm to the still-developing brain in the foetus.

The study, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, was carried out on more than 14,000 mother and child pairs from the UK and US; the children were all around 3 years old.

Mothers that had smoked when they were pregnant divided into ‘heavy’ and ‘light’ smokers, depending on how many cigarettes they had per day during pregnancy. They were then asked to record their children’s behaviour, such as temper, behaviour towards adults and whether they bullied other children.

Findings took into account factors such as the mother’s age when the child was born, her socioeconomic status and family stability. ‘Light’ smokers were 44% more likely than non-smokers to have boys with conduct problems; this figure rose to 80% in ‘heavy’ smokers.

All of the mothers that smoked when they were pregnant were more likely than non-smokers to have boys who were hyperactive or had attention deficit disorders. Girls were also significantly more likely to have problems with their conduct, but not display hyperactivity or attention deficit problems.

Professor Kate Pickett, of the University of York, led the research. She said that the results showed that smoking during pregnancy is associated with “direct effects” on development to the structure of the foetal brain, explaining that similar results had been found in studies on animals.

The greater likelihood of behavioural problems in boys than girls was explained by the theory that boys’ foetal brains are more susceptible to damage from cigarette chemicals.

The research led to further calls for mothers to quit smoking, with Professor Alan Maryon-Davis, of the Faculty of Public Health saying they should do so “ideally before they get pregnant”.

What do you think of this story? Do you believe that smoking can have such a significant impact on your child’s development? If you smoke, would or did you during pregnancy? Discuss here.