We already know of the various problems that smoking during the gestation period entails for both the mother and the baby. According to a new study published in the "Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health," smoking during pregnancy significantly increases the risk of having children with behavioral problems, problems that manifest themselves at ages as early as 3 years.
The study authors, British scientists and doctors, have focused on analyzing the serious damage that tobacco use can cause in the developmental structure and brain function of the fetus.
The research was carried out based on the analysis of more than 14,000 mothers and their children born between 2000 and 2001 in the United Kingdom. Mothers were classified as "moderate smokers" (less than 10 cigarettes a day) and "large smokers," according to the number of cigarettes they consumed per day. They were asked to assess the behavior of their 3-year-old children from a psychological questionnaire It is used to detect disorders such as hyperactivity and attention deficit.
Fights, indiscipline, harassment of other minors, hyperactivity and attention and concentration problems are the problems that were in a higher percentage in the children of very smoking mothers. In addition, boys are more susceptible to the negative effects of nicotine, so the number of boys with such behavior problems increases, compared to girls.
And, although the study took into account other factors that could influence the results (mother's age during pregnancy, educational level, socioeconomic status and family stability), it was concluded that the children of women who smoked a lot during pregnancy they presented the problems mentioned more frequently.
However, despite these proven data, the majority of pregnant women do not quit smoking during pregnancy, due to misinformation, difficulties in quitting or unconsciousness. It works very hard sometimes and can be a great effort, but studies like these come to confirm that it is worth quit smoking during pregnancy if we want healthy children psychologically, in addition to physically.
