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Bad behaviour 'linked to smoking'
"Bad behaviour 'linked to smoking'", BBC News, July 31, 2005,
Link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4727197.stm Women who smoke in pregnancy may raise the risk of their child displaying anti-social behaviour, researchers say. There was a "small but significant" link between maternal smoking and both unruly behaviour and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, they said. The average symptom scores for both increased with the number of cigarettes the mother had smoked while pregnant, the study of 1,896 twins found. The Institute of Psychiatry work is in the British Journal of Psychiatry. The researchers said the findings did not mean unruly behaviour and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were linked, although ADHD is known to increase the risk of anti-social behaviour. Previous work has linked both ADHD and anti-social behaviour with maternal smoking. However, it was not clear whether the increased risk of anti-social behaviour was linked to the ADHD rather than maternal smoking per se. ADHD is a serious behavioural disorder which experts estimate may affect up to 6% of children. People with the condition have a poor attention span and tend to be impulsive and restless. ADHD is known to increase the likelihood of anti-social behaviour. Social factors But although ADHD is thought to have a strong medical element, social factors are often blamed for unruly behaviour. The new work suggests a biological cause for anti-social behaviour. A team at the Institute of Psychiatry, in London, sent questionnaires to the parents of 723 identical twins and 1,173 non-identical twins. The parents were asked to provide information on their own smoking habits and on their children's behaviour. Behaviour was classed as anti-social if the child bullied others, often destroyed his or her own or others' belongings, had a habit of stealing things, often told lies or was frequently disobedient. A third of the mothers said they had smoked during pregnancy. Overall, a small minority of the children had anti-social behaviour or ADHD - 4-11%. Biological When the researchers looked at the influence of maternal smoking, they found it contributed in a small but significant way to both disorders. The average symptom scores for both anti-social behaviour and ADHD increased with the number of cigarettes smoked by the mother. They said there were several explanations for the trend, including direct effects of tobacco smoke on the developing baby. Lead researcher Dr Tanya Button said: "The most commonly cited one is the influence of nicotine on brain development in the foetus, possibly leading to neurological impairment. "Also, maternal prenatal smoking can reduce the amount of oxygen getting to the foetus, which may also be detrimental to later behavioural outcomes." Although factors other than smoking play a far bigger part in both conditions, the researchers advised any woman who was pregnant to avoid smoking. Commenting on the research, Professor Eric Taylor, also from London's Institute of Psychiatry, but independent from the research, said: "If it is showing that there is a biological influence on conduct disorder, that is useful to know. "Obviously, we know that pregnant women should not smoke for many health reasons," said Professor Taylor, who is also an expert for the ADHD charity ADDISS. He said: "It's probably dose-related - the more you smoke the greater the risk is - and it's not just mediated through the personality of the mother or social disadvantage. "It's probably a direct effect on the developing babies." He said it was possible that the mothers were transmitting "anti-social behaviour" genes to their children. |
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"Roman Bystrianyk" wrote in message oups.com... "Bad behaviour 'linked to smoking'", BBC News, July 31, 2005, Link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4727197.stm Women who smoke in pregnancy may raise the risk of their child displaying anti-social behaviour, researchers say. Or it could be that women who smoke in pregancy have traits that correlate with both smoking and antisocial behavior. In other words, this does not mean that the smoking in pregancy caused the antisocial behavior in their kids. A correlation is not the same as causation. (...) Jeff |
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Jeff wrote:
Or it could be that women who smoke in pregancy have traits that correlate with both smoking and antisocial behavior. Isn't that a given? Smoking *is* antisocial behaviour. Jo |
#4
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"Jo" wrote in message
... Jeff wrote: Or it could be that women who smoke in pregancy have traits that correlate with both smoking and antisocial behavior. Isn't that a given? Smoking *is* antisocial behaviour. 'Bad behaviour' be damned, it's appalling that a third of the mothers in what appears to be a fairly random study smoked while pregnant, when the risks are so well known. There is no link to the full study, so it's impossible to know how many of those women continued to smoke once they found out they were pregnant. A more accurate study would involve a population where the detrimental effects of smoking in pregnancy were unknown, if such a population still exists. And that would raise serious ethical questions. Even if you took that into account, there is a gene that predisposes people to addiction, and I don't believe anyone has proven yet whether that gene is linked to other behavioural problems or not. -- Amy Mum to Carlos born sleeping 20/11/02, & Ana born screaming 30/06/04 http://www.freewebs.com/carlos2002/ http://www.babiesonline.com/babies/a/ana%5Fj%5F2004/ My blog: http://spaces.msn.com/members/querer-hijo-querer-hija/ |
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"Jeff" wrote in message nk.net... "Roman Bystrianyk" wrote in message oups.com... "Bad behaviour 'linked to smoking'", BBC News, July 31, 2005, Link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4727197.stm Women who smoke in pregnancy may raise the risk of their child displaying anti-social behaviour, researchers say. Or it could be that women who smoke in pregancy have traits that correlate with both smoking and antisocial behavior. In other words, this does not mean that the smoking in pregancy caused the antisocial behavior in their kids. A correlation is not the same as causation. (...) Jeff That was exactly my thought too. I'm a social worker and most of my low-income, welfare, Medicaid moms smoke. Pregnancy or not. Fact is, smoking is becoming an indicator of "low socioeconomic status", at least in the US. So, am I surprised that these are the moms having more kids with behavioral issues? Not in the least. Many of these moms have behavioral issues, some of which they self-medicate through nicotine. So, you've got a mom passing on genetic factors, in a low socioeconomic environment, making choices she knows is harmful to the pregnancy (continuing to smoke) or is so uneducated she is unaware of the risks, having children with increased risk of ADHD and behavioral issues. Take tobacco out of the picture and you've still got all the risk factors. The dose dependent part does lend itself to the theory that smoking may have a causative factor, but that can also be explained by the mother requiring more nicotine to self-medicate a more severe behavioral issue, or a further lack of concern about the pregnancy by not trying to reduce the amount of smoking. Believe me, I'd love to tell my moms that if they quit smoking while pregnant (or even around the kids), that they'd be less likely to have to deal with ADHD, behavioral problem children. Realistically, their kids will still have the same problems. What I'd like to see is a study that controls for these factors. Control group could be moms that smoked until pregnancy and then quit vs. moms who continued. I think then you'll at least get similar socioeconomic groups, educational level, access to medical care, and prenatal care. Although, I suspect the smokers who quit will be more compliant with prenatal health recommendations, so it wouldn't be a perfect comparison. Amy |
#6
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my sister has two kids and she smoked all the time she was PG and there
isnothing wrong with them!!!! And they sweet children as well as well manered.It not the smoking that's making children behave badly it the way we parent now. I had my behind wiped enfough that I knew better than to miss behave. Come on everyone that was brought up good can tell you that. Use Your Heads People!!!!! |
#7
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"julie MT" wrote in message
oups.com... my sister has two kids and she smoked all the time she was PG and there isnothing wrong with them!!!! That's bad 'science', and it used to be used for justifying the 'health benefits' of smoking. Research has proven the risks of smoking during pregnancy, but like anything, it doesn't mean _everyone_ who is exposed to secondhand smoke will suffer serious health problems. The fact that you know a couple of children who are fine means nothing statistically, all it means is that your sister and her children are lucky. Few of the parents whose children _were_ obviously harmed by secondhand smoke are going to pipe up as you have. It takes someone with a lot of humility to cry 'Mea culpa' and put their own reputation on the line for the sake of public health awareness. And they sweet children as well as well manered.It not the smoking that's making children behave badly it the way we parent now. Whether the study is accurate or not, smoking in pregnancy is a _bad thing_. I suspect as with most things, the truth in this claim lies somewhere in the middle. Nicotine and the other chemicals present in tobacco probably do have a detrimental and permanent effect on the developing brain of an unborn child, but it has probably been over-reported in this study due to other factors such as genetics, socio-economic status, education levels etc. I had my behind wiped enfough that I knew better than to miss behave. I'm glad of that, and I hope you can wipe your own now ;-) Use Your Heads People!!!!! Too right, use your heads and quit smoking before you TTC. If you discover you're pregnant, quit smoking. Better still, don't ever start smoking. -- Amy Mum to Carlos born sleeping 20/11/02, & Ana born screaming 30/06/04 http://www.freewebs.com/carlos2002/ http://www.babiesonline.com/babies/a/ana%5Fj%5F2004/ My blog: http://spaces.msn.com/members/querer-hijo-querer-hija/ |
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"julie MT" wrote in message
oups.com... my sister has two kids and she smoked all the time she was PG and there isnothing wrong with them!!!! And they sweet children as well as well manered.It not the smoking that's making children behave badly it the way we parent now. I had my behind wiped enfough that I knew better than to miss behave. Come on everyone that was brought up good can tell you that. Use Your Heads People!!!!! Yes, that may be true for your sister, but you cannot use one data point and pretend it is the same for everyone! I have brown hair and eyes - does that mean everyone does? And as other posters have suggested, children from lower socio-economic homes where smoking is prevalent may also be exposed to other anti-social behaviours and risk factors such as poor nutrition, lack of educational support and perhaps even physical abuse [are you suggesting you were beaten every day into compliance by your statement: "I had my behind wiped enfough [sic] that I knew better than to miss behave [sic]"] . We teachers see it every day. -- Jacqueline #1 Due any day now... |
#9
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Jeff wrote:
"Roman Bystrianyk" wrote in message oups.com... "Bad behaviour 'linked to smoking'", BBC News, July 31, 2005, Link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4727197.stm Women who smoke in pregnancy may raise the risk of their child displaying anti-social behaviour, researchers say. Or it could be that women who smoke in pregancy have traits that correlate with both smoking and antisocial behavior. In other words, this does not mean that the smoking in pregancy caused the antisocial behavior in their kids. A correlation is not the same as causation. (...) I don't know what, or if this proves much... but my first child by my first husband does not have ADHD. My second child by my second husband has ADHD. My parenting methods are, and have been, the same for both. We don't smoke. Aside from postnatal depression, I am reasonably mentally healthy (and had worse and longer untreated PND with my first child, not my second) We are not, nor have we ever been 'well off' financially. It has always been a struggle but we manage. There are house rules. There are limits set. My children don't run wild at all times of day and night, and for the most part (no one is perfect) I know where they are and what they are up to. The only causal difference I can see? My first husband did not have ADHD. He was raised in a very poor household with 4 siblings, strong moral guidance, and his parents never smoked. My second husband has ADHD. He was also raised in a very poor household with 4 siblings, strong moral guidance and his parents never smoked. I'm not saying socio-economic factors don't take their toll /as well/, but I believe whole point about ADHD is that it is what can be diagnosed *after all other possible causes have been ruled out* (bad parenting, sleep apnoea etc) which would cause similar/the same symptoms. If you can eliminate the childs 'ADHD' like behaviour by changing their upbringing/socio-economic position/quality of parenting, then it ain't ADHD. IMO. -- Grymma AFPOh Goddess Of Hangovers; B.F.(use 'reply to') I feel much better, now that I've given up hope. |
#10
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" I'm not saying socio-economic factors don't take their toll /as well/, but I believe whole point about ADHD is that it is what can be diagnosed *after all other possible causes have been ruled out* (bad parenting, sleep apnoea etc) which would cause similar/the same symptoms. If you can eliminate the childs 'ADHD' like behaviour by changing their upbringing/socio-economic position/quality of parenting, then it ain't ADHD. IMO. I totally agree, unfortunately the ADHD diagnosis is used pretty indiscriminately for behavioral issues. My suspicion is that this study took pre-existing ADHD diagnoses (many of which may have been more behavioral in nature), instead of doing thorough medical screenings to look for organic ADHD. Behavioral issues are, unfortunately, highly linked to socioeconomic factors. I plead guilty to perpetuating misdiagnosis of kids with ADHD because it's the only way I can get some of them school and behavioral services. You gotta have a diagnosis, and ADHD is an easy one to come by. Amy |
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