smoking
If women need yet another reason to avoid smoking during pregnancy, researchers now say that tobacco use by expectant mothers may raise the risk that their children will develop psychotic symptoms
The new research, published in the October issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry, doesn't prove that smoking during pregnancy causes the psychotic behavior, but it does suggest a link.
In the study of 6,356 children in the United Kingdom, more than 11 percent of the 12-year-olds appeared to have definite or suspected symptoms of psychosis.
The researchers found that the children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy were more likely to have the symptoms, and the risk rose in those whose mothers smoked the most while pregnant.
The new research, published in the October issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry, doesn't prove that smoking during pregnancy causes the psychotic behavior, but it does suggest a link.
In the study of 6,356 children in the United Kingdom, more than 11 percent of the 12-year-olds appeared to have definite or suspected symptoms of psychosis.
The researchers found that the children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy were more likely to have the symptoms, and the risk rose in those whose mothers smoked the most while pregnant.