Direct and Passive Prenatal Nicotine Exposure and the Development of Externalizing Psychopathology
Gatzke-Kopp LM and Beauchaine TP
The Issue
Children of smokers are more likely to have behavior problems than children who aren’t exposed to cigarette smoke. Some studies have looked at the children of women who smoked during pregnancy. This study also looked at the offspring of women who were exposed to second-hand smoke to see if there is something about tobacco smoke itself that causes harm to the developing baby.
The Research
This study was done with 171, 7 to 15 year old children, 136 of whom were male, and 133 mothers and 2 fathers. The children had been identified as having behavior problems. The participants were grouped according to whether or not their mother had smoked, or had been exposed to second-hand smoke during pregnancy. The number of cigarettes per day smoked and during which trimester were also noted. The mothers were asked about other possible risk factors, such as parenting style, family income, whether they had mental health issues themselves, and maternal drug use, including alcohol. All of these were used in the analysis of whether prenatal smoking and exposure to cigarette smoke were related to behavior problems alone, or if they also were associated with other types of behavior or mental health problems. The children were tested with the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and the Child Symptom Inventory (CSI).
The Outcome
This study showed that there is a direct relationship between exposure to cigarette smoke, whether the mother herself smoked or was exposed to second hand smoke, and behavior disorders in her children. Exposure to cigarette smoke before birth was related only to much more severe symptoms of conduct disorder and ADHD in the child and adolescent participants, but did not cause depression or anxiety. The nicotine in the tobacco seems to produce changes in the brain structures involved in impulse control, which is associated with behavior problems.
Conclusions
Children exposed to cigarette smoke before birth, are at risk of developing serious behavior problems such as conduct disorder or having more severe symptoms of AD/HD. It does not matter if the mother herself smoked or if she was exposed to second hand smoke.
The preceding is a summary of:
Gatzke-Kopp LM, Beauchaine TP. Direct and passive prenatal nicotine exposure and the development of externalizing psychopathology. Child Psychiatry and Human Development. 2007; 38: 255-269.
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