Mothers who smoke or breath significant smoke, such as by an in home, in house smoker, may allow the creation of a genetic mutation in the baby resulting in a higher risk for the development of cancer later in life.
At the University of Pittsburgh Stephan Grant discovered the cancer-promoting gene mutation in newborn cord blood of infants born to tobacco-smoking mothers. This gene is called GPA and represents one of a group of genes that transform ells into cancer cells.
Grant said, Maternal tobacco smoke—either their own act of smoking or secondhand—induces mutations in the baby that are associated with cancer development and that are highly likely to persist throughout their lifetime.”
He also said to pregnant women, “Don’t smoke, and stay away from those who do.”
His study was published in the Open Pediatric Medicine Journal and supported by the NIH.
See hhs.gov
References:
HHS HealthBeat, August 09, 2010. Hhs.gov
Comments
Although I think typically all pregnant women know of this warning, if only they would heed it.
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