title: Effects of tobacco smoking in pregnancy on offspring intelligence at the age of 5.
abstract: The aim of the study was to examine the effects of tobacco smoking in pregnancy on children's IQ at the age of 5. A prospective follow-up study was conducted on 1,782 women, and their offspring were sampled from the Danish National Birth Cohort. At 5 years of age, the children were tested with the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence-Revised. Parental education, maternal IQ, maternal alcohol consumption in pregnancy, the sex and age of the child, and tester were considered core confounders, but the full model also controlled for prenatal paternal smoking, maternal age and Bodymass Mass Index, parity, family/home environment, postnatal parental smoking, breast feeding, the child's health status, and indicators for hearing and vision impairments. Unadjusted analyses showed a statistically significant decrement of 4 points on full-scale IQ (FSIQ) associated with smoking 10+ cigarettes per day compared to nonsmoking. After adjustment for potential confounders, no significant effects of prenatal exposure to tobacco smoking were found. Considering the indisputable teratogenic effects of tobacco smoking, these findings should be interpreted with caution. Still, the results may indicate that previous studies that failed to control for important confounders, particularly maternal intelligence, may be subject to substantial residual confounding.
authors: Section of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Bartholins Allé 2 Aarhus C, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark; Department of Clinical Medicine, Center of Functionally Integrative Neuroscience, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark. hfe@soci.au.dk
authors: Hanne-Lise
authors: HL
authors: Falgreen Eriksen
authors: Ulrik Schiøler
authors: US
authors: Kesmodel
authors: Theresa
authors: T
authors: Wimberley
authors: Mette
authors: M
authors: Underbjerg
authors: Tina Røndrup
authors: TR
authors: Kilburn
authors: Erik Lykke
authors: EL
authors: Mortensen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007360:Intelligence; D007361:Intelligence Tests; D016015:Logistic Models; D008425:Maternal Behavior; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / Q000209:etiology*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires