Study Refutes Link Between Maternal Smoking and Autism

Smoking during pregnancy does not cause autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in children, finds a new study.

Researchers have considered a variety of chemical exposures in the environment during pregnancy and early life as possible contributing factors in the development of autism spectrum disorders.

Smoking among Women / Rise in Tobacco Usage in Women
Tobacco use in women is on the rise. The health risks of tobacco are far too many has never done a woman any good psychologically or health-wise.

Many have considered prenatal exposure to tobacco smoke a possible cause due to known associations with behavioural disorders and obstetric complications.

Past studies of maternal smoking and autism have had mixed results.

"We found no evidence that maternal smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of autism spectrum disorders," Dr. Brian Lee, an epidemiologist at Drexel's School of Public Health, who led the research in collaboration with researchers from Sweden's Karolinska Institute and the University of Bristol (Bristol, UK) said.

Autism Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment, Prognosis
Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder typically characterized by impaired social and communication skills combined with repetitive movements.

In the new study, Lee and colleagues analyzed data from Swedish national and regional registries for a set of 3,958 children with autism spectrum disorders, along with a control set of 38,983 children born during the same period who did not receive an ASD diagnosis.

Overall, 19.8 percent of the ASD cases were exposed to maternal smoking during pregnancy, compared to 18.4 percent of control cases.

Smoking Risk Calculator
Do you smoke cigarettes daily? Use medindia smoking risk calculator and calculate your reduced Life Span due to Smoking.

These rates showed an association between maternal smoking and the odds of an autism spectrum disorder, in unadjusted analyses.

The report helps to reassure mothers who smoked during pregnancy that their behavior was not likely responsible for their child's autism,

Pregnancy and Complications
In-depth guide for expecting mothers to overcome health complications related to early or late pregnancy. Anemia, urinary infection, diabetes, premature labor to name a few.

Lee said, and "crosses off another suspect on the list of possible environmental risk factors for ASD."

However, he cautioned that smoking during pregnancy is still unhealthy for mothers and has other known risks for their children.

The study will appear in a forthcoming issue of the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Source-ANI