Impact of Smoking During Pregnancy on Baby's Weight
Author Information
Author(s): Corinne Ward, Sarah Lewis, Tim Coleman
Primary Institution: University of Nottingham
Hypothesis
Does maternal smoking and environmental tobacco smoke exposure during pregnancy affect birth weight?
Conclusion
Maternal smoking and environmental tobacco smoke exposure during pregnancy significantly lower infants' birth weights.
Supporting Evidence
- 13% of UK infants were exposed to environmental tobacco smoke.
- Maternal smoking lowered infants' adjusted mean birth weights by 146 g.
- Environmental tobacco smoke exposure lowered infants' adjusted mean birth weights by 36 g.
Takeaway
Smoking while pregnant can make babies smaller. Even if a mom doesn't smoke, if her partner does, it can still affect the baby's weight.
Methodology
Retrospective study using interview data from parents of children born in 2000/2001 in the UK.
Potential Biases
Participants may have concealed smoking exposure for socially desirable responses.
Limitations
Potential recall bias in self-reported smoking data and lack of data on other sources of ETS exposure.
Participant Demographics
Parents of 18,297 children, with 36% of mothers smoking and 13% exposed to ETS.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p<0.001
Confidence Interval
95% CI, 5 g to 67 g
Statistical Significance
p<0.001
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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