Smoking During Pregnancy, Lead Exposure Raise ADHD Risk in Kids
November 23rd, 2009 | by author |Study found one more than doubled chances, while both increased risk eightfold
By Jennifer Thomas
HealthDay Reporter
(HealthDay News) — Children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy or who were exposed to lead have more than double the risk of having attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as other children, new research shows.
And with exposure to both cigarettes and lead, the chances of having ADHD soared. Children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy and whose blood showed signs of lead exposure had eight times the risk of having ADHD.
“When you have both exposures, there is a synergistic effect,” said study author Dr. Tanya Froehlich, a developmental and behavioral pediatric specialist and an assistant professor of pediatrics at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. Read more….