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November 29, 2006 10:58:27 AM PST
WEDNESDAY, Nov. 29 (HealthDay News) -- Pregnant women who smoke may actually "program" their kids to become smokers, according to an Australian study that looked at 3,000 mothers and their children.
Researchers at the University of Queensland examined the smoking patterns of the children when they reached the age of 21 and then compared them to the smoking behaviors of the mothers during pregnancy. About one-third of the mothers smoked when they were pregnant.
Children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy were nearly three times more likely to start smoking regularly at, or before, age 14 and about twice as like to start smoking after age 14 compared to children born to nonsmoking mothers.
The smoking patterns of children of mothers who stopped smoking while pregnant, but started smoking again after pregnancy, were similar to the children of mothers who never smoked, the study found.
The findings suggest that smoking during pregnancy has some direct effect on the child's likelihood of becoming a smoker, the researchers concluded. This is yet another reason why pregnant women should not smoke, they said.
The study is published in the journal Tobacco Control.
More information
The American Lung Association has more about smoking and pregnancy.
