Pregnant women who smoke risk their baby's mental health claims study

For women who are expecting to have a baby but are struggling to stop smoking, hypnotherapy or other treatment to help stop the addiction for at least the period of their pregnancy could be especially important; a new study has revealed that smoking whilst pregnant can present a severe risk for a baby's psychological health.

Research conducted at Finland's Turku University Hospital is the first such study to connect the mental health problems (such as depression, anxiety or social disorders) of children with prenatal smoking. The study found that smoking during pregnancy can significantly raise the risk of the child developing such problems in childhood or adolescence.

Researchers looked at the birth records of around 175,000 children in the late 1980s, as well as any instances where the children may have been exposed to psychotropic drug - psychiatric medicines - as they aged.

The study found that children whose mothers had smoked whilst they were pregnant were nearly a third (32%) more likely to have been prescribed psychiatric medicine at some point in their childhood or adolescence than those whose mothers did not smoke.

Neil Grunberg, US psychology professor from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Maryland, commented on the research in The Nursing Times.

"This is an interesting study which raises the important possibility that prenatal exposure to smoking may pose additional risks that have not been identified to date," said Professor Grunberg, adding that the effects are quantifiable but seem "to be small."