Genetic mutations with an impact on long-term health have been noticed in children born to non-smoking mothers, reveals a study done at University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.
The abnormalities, which were indistinguishable from those found in newborns of mothers who were active smokers, may affect survival, birth weight and lifelong susceptibility to diseases like cancer, the study revealed.
Birth Defects - Infections
Birth defects are abnormalities, which occur before the birth of the baby and can be caused due to genetic, environmental and other unknown reasons.
Advertisement
The study confirmed previous research in which study author Stephen G. Grant, associate professor of environmental and occupational health at Pitt's Graduate School of Public Health, discovered evidence of abnormalities in the HPRT gene located on the X chromosome in cord blood from newborns of non-smokers exposed to environmental tobacco smoke.
In the current study, Dr. Grant confirmed smoke-induced mutation in another gene called glycophorin A, or GPA, that is representative of oncogenes - genes that transform normal cells into cancer cells and cause solid tumors. The GPA mutation was the same level and type in newborns of mothers who were active smokers and of non-smoking mothers exposed to tobacco smoke. Likewise, the mutations were discernable in newborns of women who had stopped smoking during their pregnancies, but who did not actively avoid second-hand smoke.
![Pregnancy and Antenatal Care]( "Pregnancy and Antenatal Care")
What is Antenatal care and its importance during pregnancy for mother and baby, with details on the medical test preformed during the first visit to the doctor.
"These findings back up our previous conclusion that passive, or secondary, smoke causes permanent genetic damage in newborns that is very similar to the damage caused by active smoking," Dr. Grant said.
"By using a different assay, we were able to pick up a completely distinct yet equally important type of genetic mutation that is likely to persist throughout a child's lifetime. Pregnant women should not only stop smoking, but be aware of their exposure to tobacco smoke from other family members, work and social situations," he added.
The study was published in the online Open Pediatric Medicine Journal.
Source: ANI
Pregnancy and Antenatal Care
What is Antenatal care and its importance during pregnancy for mother and baby, with details on the medical test preformed during the first visit to the doctor.
Advertisement
"These findings back up our previous conclusion that passive, or secondary, smoke causes permanent genetic damage in newborns that is very similar to the damage caused by active smoking," Dr. Grant said.
"By using a different assay, we were able to pick up a completely distinct yet equally important type of genetic mutation that is likely to persist throughout a child's lifetime. Pregnant women should not only stop smoking, but be aware of their exposure to tobacco smoke from other family members, work and social situations," he added.
The study was published in the online Open Pediatric Medicine Journal.
Source: ANI
Smoking Risk Calculator
Do you smoke cigarettes daily? Use medindia smoking risk calculator and calculate your reduced Life Span due to Smoking.
Advertisement
 Passive Smoking Exposure Increases Infectious Disease Risk in KidsKids exposed to passive smoking are at an increased risk of catching infectious diseases and have to be admitted to hospital, reveals a new study. | Advertisement
|
Advertisement
Recommended Reading
Latest Child Health News
In 2022, the number of North Korean kids falling under the obese category stood at 47,500 compared with 25,100 in 2012.
In mice the maternal milk provides a key signal that instructs cardiomyocytes to activate lipid metabolism.
Among infants infections from enterovirus are common, but the association to heart muscle inflammation (myocarditis) with severe outcomes is unusual.
New approach called “Eat, Sleep, Console” gets newborns with symptoms of opioid withdrawal out of the hospital sooner and with less medication.
Ground-breaking study has linked poor air quality in India to cognitive deficits in infants, highlighting the potential long-term impact of pollution on child development.