I know it’s been said, it’s been written before. But it is still a topic that is worth revisiting – smoking during pregnancy. This time I am summarizing two new studies published in the November issue of the Journal of Pediatrics.

Study # 1:

This international study looked at pregnant women from the US (Texas), Norway, and Holland and the levels of the nicotine metabolite cotinine in their blood serum. The researchers found that women who smoked during pregnancy -as indicated by high levels of cotinine – have almost 2.5 times higher likelihood of having a baby with oral clefts.

Study #2:

Another study by researchers at Brown University looked at the effect of cigarette smoke exposure on the behavior of babies. Similarly, they also measured the cotinine levels in the blood of 56 healthy babies. Half of the babies exposed to cigarette smoke were “irritable and difficult to soothe” compared to unexposed babies.

Children are exposed to cigarette smoke in different ways, namely:

• as a fetus in the uterus of a smoking mother
• secondhand smoke from smoking adults in the environment, mainly the parents
• through breast milk of a smoking mother

The editorial of the abovementioned journal described smoking as a “major pediatric problem” and therefore pushes for more active preventive measures.