Why Baby Boys Bear the Brunt of Maternal Smoking...

    A recent study has shed light on the differential impacts of maternal smoking during pregnancy revealing that male offspring are more adversely affected than their female counterparts. This research indicates that prenatal exposure to tobacco smoke may have sex-specific consequences, particularly influencing the health and development of male children.

    The study suggests that male fetuses exposed to maternal smoking in utero face heightened risks of various health issues, including reduced birth weight and impaired neurodevelopment. These findings underscore the critical need for targeted public health interventions aimed at reducing smoking rates among pregnant women to mitigate these adverse outcomes.

    The mechanisms underlying this sex-specific vulnerability are not yet fully understood. However, researchers hypothesize that hormonal differences between male and female fetuses may play a role in modulating the effects of toxic substances like nicotine. Further investigation is required to elucidate these pathways and develop tailored strategies to protect vulnerable populations.

    This study adds to the growing body of evidence highlighting the detrimental effects of prenatal tobacco exposure.

Mom’s Smoking Can Alter Fetus’s DNA

http://www.livescience.com/54253-smoking-cigarettes-alters-fetal-dna.html

Despite the large amount of research and warnings, studies have shown that 12% of pregnant women in America still smoke. Studies are also showing that smoking during pregnancy can actually alter the DNA of the fetus and lead to birth defects such as low birth weight, asthma, and cleft lips/palates. In order to collect this data, researchers gave questionnaires to 7,000 mothers from around the world where they were asked how often they smoked during their pregnancy. Also, they collected a blood sample from each newborn’s umbilical cords so that they could examine their DNA. The studies showed that DNA does not change the DNA sequence in smoke-affected babies, but affected which genes were turned on or off. For example, “methylation” is when a small molecule is added onto DNA, preventing a certain section from being turned on, which can lead to birth defects. Even though the fetuses aren’t breathing in the smoke, many toxins from cigarettes will pass through the placenta and into the fetus. Researchers believe that methylation plays a large role in the effects on the DNA in the fetus.

It is alarming to me that a percentage of pregnant women in the country still smoke while pregnant. Even though 12% is not that high while looking at the big picture, in reality 1% would still be too high a number. Also, this percentage doesn’t take into account the amount of women who lied and said they did not smoke while pregnant. The effects of smoke on adults is significant and can lead to a number of health complications over time such as various types of cancers and heart disease, so I can only image how many complications these affected fetuses will have growing up. It is also often said that these fetuses are more likely to die from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and if they do live, they have an increased chance of ADHD. Mothers are supposed to love and care for their children, and smoking while pregnant is selfish because their addiction can lead to lifelong complications or even death for their child.

Mother's Smoking Can Alter Fetus's DNA

A new study indicates that smoking while pregnant changes the fetus's DNA with many other complications for the unborn child. These complications include, low birth weight, risks of asthma, and cleft lips or palates. Despite of health precautions, in the United States, about 12 percent of pregnant women smoke while they are pregnant. The American Journal of Human Genetics examine the effects on fetal's DNA and looked at 7,000 newborns and their mothers around the globe. The researchers collected blood sample from the newborn and gathered information about the mother's smoking habits. Researchers observed epigenetic changes, which alters the DNA sequence by either switching "on or "off" in a specifc gene. One specific gene they examine was methylation, it is a small molecule part of the DNA that prevents a specific DNA sequence from turning on. Researchers discovered, newborn DNA was different from the DNA of newborns who were born to non-smokers. Dr. Stephanie London, an epidemiologist states that even if the fetus is developing, many of the chemicals while smoking can pass through the placenta. However, some health complications remains unclear for maternal smoking and further studies are needed to be confirmed.

I personally think this research is not a surprise for me because smoking or consuming any sort of drug will have health complications to the developing child. It is essential for individuals to take precautions of their habits during pregnancy. Prenatal smoking is a major issue that should be taken seriously and help those women who are suffering from it. This research ensures that substance use or smoking can be life-threatening to the fetus. 

The Real Effect of Smoking During Pregnancy

A study of over 6,000 mothers and their children was recently conducted, and it was one of the largest of its kind. The purpose of the study was to prove that smoking while pregnant can chemically modify the DNA of a fetus. The researchers divided the mothers into three categories, sustained smokers who smoked daily throughout pregnancy(13%), non-smokers women who never smoked(62%), and any smoking which were women who smoked occasionally or during the beginning of pregnancy(25%). Researchers analyzed methylation in newborns DNA, DNA methtylation is an epigenetic mechanism used by cells to control gene expression. 

          

              The results showed that in sustained smokers 6,073 places of DNA were identified as chemically modified when compared to the DNA of the non-smokers; about half of these genes could be identified in a specific location. The genes that were identified were related to lung and nervous system development, smoking related cancers, birth defects, and cleft palates. The researchers believe that these birth defects are related the DNA methylation of these genes and are working on further studies to confirm. 

Blood from Children Contain Evidence of Prenatal Smoking

Researchers at John Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health led a study where the blood of 531 children up to five years old were tested  to see if they could find any evidence that shows that their mother's smoked during pregnancy. In a previous study, there were presences of epigenetic marks, which include DNA methylation, in the DNA of a newborn's umbilical cord at 26 locations of the genome. The epigenetic markers are molecules not part of the DNA sequence and regulate the turning on and off of genes.

This new study took this even further, by finding that when the 26 epigenetic markers were looked at in the children, 81%  of the time the researchers could correctly predict that there was prenatal smoking. Although, in some cases it could be from exposure to secondhand smoke after birth. This study overall found that not only is the DNA marked in newborns, but it is still shows the epigenetic markers even five years after the children are born. This is known as an epigenetic memory. Prenatal smoking causes many health problems for children down the line and finding out if their mother's smoked during pregnancy can at least get a head start in preventing or treating these problems. I never knew that you can actually tell if a woman smoked during pregnancy, especially in the DNA of their child even after five years of being born.

Original article