Elevated risk of tobacco dependence among offspring of mothers who smoke during pregnancy: A 30-year prospective study (Brown/Harvard, Buka).
Buka, S.¹, Shenassa, E.², & Niaura, R.². ¹Harvard School of Public Health, ²Miriam Hospital, Brown Medical School.

Based on a long-term prospective investigation of 1248 subjects followed from pregnancy through adulthood, we report that offspring whose mothers reported smoking a pack or more of cigarettes during their pregnancy were significantly more likely to meet DSM criteria for lifetime tobacco dependence than offspring of mothers who reported to have never smoked during pregnancy. The findings were specific for tobacco dependence; odds of marijuana dependence were not significantly elevated among the offspring of smokers. As with recent animal studies, these findings suggest that cigarette smoke exposure during pregnancy may alter fetal neuroreceptors increasing the likelihood of subsequent nicotine dependence among offspring. A link between MSP and nicotine dependence has important public health implications. In the U.S. alone, nearly half of all women smokers continue to smoke through their pregnancies; this amounts to about 12% of all women who give birth and over half million infants who are annually exposed to cigarette smoke prenatally.