Scientists of University of Southern California, US had been able to make a connection between the pediatric asthma and smoking habit of mother and maternal grandmother.
The study had taken detailed histories of families with children suffering from asthma regarding the smoking habits of the mother before, during and after the pregnancy. The history of smoking of other family members, especially that of the maternal grandmother of the child, were also considered by the researchers.The results of the study show that exposure to maternal smoking while still in the uterus had increased considerably the risk of having childhood asthma in the first five years of life. Children of mothers who quit smoking before pregnancy did not show any risks for asthma. On interesting discovery was the fact that if mother had experienced maternal smoking while still in the uterus of her mother, children’s risk of having childhood asthma also increases. However, postnatal exposure to smoke did not seem to contribute significantly to the asthmatic tendencies of the child.
The results were published in the current issue of the journal Chest.
Reference: Journal Chest, issue April 2005
