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posted by LaminatorX on Tuesday July 22 2014, @01:20PM   Printer-friendly
from the Up-in-Smoke dept.

Researchers have found a causal link between maternal nicotine use during pregnancy and a child having ADHD (Full text). The new study also hints-but doesn't prove-that nicotine-replacement products used during pregnancy, such as patches and gum, could pose the same risk to children.

In this large cohort of children followed up to 8 to 14 years of age, we found that both maternal and paternal smoking during pregnancy were associated with an elevated risk for ADHD, based on hospital diagnosis, medication, and hyperactivity/inattention scores. The association was consistently stronger for maternal smoking than for paternal smoking and was also found for mother's use of nicotine replacement during pregnancy. These results suggest a causal effect of smoking (and nicotine) during fetal life or other factors related to maternal nicotine dependance. The findings for paternal smoking could reflect an effect of passive smoking but may also be a result of social or genetic confounding

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  • (Score: -1, Troll) by Ethanol-fueled on Tuesday July 22 2014, @02:03PM

    by Ethanol-fueled (2792) on Tuesday July 22 2014, @02:03PM (#72281) Homepage

    "Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder" is just a bullshit label used to medicalize typical childhood behavior and/or poor parenting.
     

    • (Score: 5, Interesting) by dyingtolive on Tuesday July 22 2014, @02:57PM

      by dyingtolive (952) on Tuesday July 22 2014, @02:57PM (#72298)

      I don't completely agree with that. There are people for whom such a condition exists, I'm sure. I think I remember them as being the far end of the "special kid" spectrum in school. I just think it's vastly over-diagnosed, and is used to correct the "boys will be boys" syndrome.

      I recall the teachers (being medical professionals, after all) trying to label me with ADD back in the day because I spent too much time daydreaming and wouldn't show work on math homework. What they couldn't wrap their heads around was that I could do long division when they were introducing multiplication, so it was something I'd been brow beat with years past, and I'm good at math. I was home-schooled before that year. The joys of public school, I guess.

      Years later, most of those same teachers pulled the same shit with my 14 year old brother because he didn't give a damn about homework or classes, yet he would spend hours once he got home meticulously doing his own stop motion animation.

      --
      Don't blame me, I voted for moose wang!
      • (Score: 3, Insightful) by meisterister on Tuesday July 22 2014, @03:20PM

        by meisterister (949) on Tuesday July 22 2014, @03:20PM (#72306) Journal

        Great Scot! Students aren't paying attention in boring, mandatory classes! Medicate them until they do!

        --
        (May or may not have been) Posted from my K6-2, Athlon XP, or Pentium I/II/III.
        • (Score: 2) by dyingtolive on Tuesday July 22 2014, @04:00PM

          by dyingtolive (952) on Tuesday July 22 2014, @04:00PM (#72322)

          Interestingly, they never bothered by sisters with it and one of them was a mediocre student.

          --
          Don't blame me, I voted for moose wang!
      • (Score: 4, Informative) by DrMag on Tuesday July 22 2014, @04:58PM

        by DrMag (1860) on Tuesday July 22 2014, @04:58PM (#72348)

        This is correct; I have a good friend who is a psychiatrist that treats people who suffer from (true) ADHD, and know his son (who is an extreme case of ADHD) very well. It is indeed a real condition; it's a neurological problem where synapses don't quite work the way they should. Think of it as latency issues and dropped packets in the brain.

        It is also treated as a blanket description of every distractable person out there, and that's not good. Medicating everyone just cheapens the attitude of people toward a real condition, and prevents people from getting the help they really need. Then everyone acts all surprised when someone does something bizarre, reprehensible, or tragic. If we weren't so fixated on getting a quick fix to every problem we encounter, maybe we could start doing something about mental health in this world.

    • (Score: 1) by goodie on Tuesday July 22 2014, @05:03PM

      by goodie (1877) on Tuesday July 22 2014, @05:03PM (#72353) Journal

      While I am certain that there are special cases where children should be followed closely and maybe (even though I really not convinced about it...) medicated in some way, I think that if we play the correlation game we will find a lot of things that relate to so-called ADHD.
      As far as I know it's a very North American thing anyway, although unfortunately it is starting to become popular across Europe as well (starting the in West of course).

      When we had our first child, the (old) doctor told us, at the first visit (around 2 weeks I think?) that our boy was very energetic. She said it was absolutely a good thing (anyway not being from North America we didn't think so either) but that we should watch out where we put him in school later because he could be pinned as "troublesome" or "hyperactive" even though there's nothing wrong with him and he just needs to be stimulated and challenged often. She advised for sports and physical activities as a good way to "channel" this energy. I always wonder that'll be like later on when we have to actually find a school for him.

    • (Score: 4, Informative) by LaminatorX on Tuesday July 22 2014, @05:35PM

      by LaminatorX (14) <laminatorxNO@SPAMgmail.com> on Tuesday July 22 2014, @05:35PM (#72365)

      Without meds, I end up with laundry mouldering on my basement floor next to the washing machine and utilities shut off for non-payment despite having thousands of dollars in the bank. With meds, I'm a functional adult.

      While perhaps over-diagnosed, it is a very real thing.

  • (Score: 0) by MorbidBBQ on Tuesday July 22 2014, @02:03PM

    by MorbidBBQ (3210) on Tuesday July 22 2014, @02:03PM (#72282)
    At least the summary admits its a "causal link", but the fact that Paternal nicotine usage has an affect points more towards parenting (IMHO).

    IANAL, IANAD, IANAnsaS, I'm a real boy!
    • (Score: 5, Insightful) by sgleysti on Tuesday July 22 2014, @02:52PM

      by sgleysti (56) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday July 22 2014, @02:52PM (#72293)

      We know that people with ADHD have poor inhibition control. If ADHD is heritable and people who have it are more likely to smoke / less likely to be able to quit, this may be the effect that they are measuring.

      • (Score: 3, Insightful) by opinionated_science on Tuesday July 22 2014, @04:32PM

        by opinionated_science (4031) on Tuesday July 22 2014, @04:32PM (#72339)

        Complex biology no doubt. However, perhaps a reason to ban smoking in front of minors...?

        • (Score: 1, Flamebait) by Hairyfeet on Wednesday July 23 2014, @12:08AM

          by Hairyfeet (75) <{bassbeast1968} {at} {gmail.com}> on Wednesday July 23 2014, @12:08AM (#72549) Journal

          Do we REALLY need more nanny government? really? You do realize that there is something like 5 states that have banned using e-cigs in public even though all you exhale is water vapor...yes?

          Frankly after all the shit we've seen from this government the past decade the LAST fucking thing we need is to give them MORE laws, or did you forget that every person in America is already guilty of 3 felonies a day. [amazon.com]

          Hell if you want to stop cigarette smoking you should instead push for the removal of regulations against e-cigs. I have seen more people quit thanks to e-cigs than anything else (last figures I saw were something like 60% success rate) and I have no doubt that if you removed all the reg BS you could buy e-cigs cheaper than regular.

          --
          ACs are never seen so don't bother. Always ready to show SJWs for the racists they are.
      • (Score: -1, Troll) by Ethanol-fueled on Tuesday July 22 2014, @04:34PM

        by Ethanol-fueled (2792) on Tuesday July 22 2014, @04:34PM (#72340) Homepage

        All kids have poor inhibition control. There's this thing called "discipline" out there, and if you're a parent who uses it effectively you're going to have to deal with the occasional unfortunate side-effect of your kids pouting and calling you the worst meanie-weenie in the whole wide world. Shocking, I know.

        Anyway, most new parents nowadays are striving to be those cool dream-parents they never had as kids, granting their kids the Disney-movie fantasies they themselves daydreamed about while being grounded.

        It reminds me of that scene in Full Metal Jacket where Sgt. Hartman barks, "Well thank you very much, can I be in charge for awhile?!"

        So just who is in charge when parents and kids are best-friends?

    • (Score: 3, Informative) by cykros on Wednesday July 23 2014, @12:52AM

      by cykros (989) on Wednesday July 23 2014, @12:52AM (#72558)

      Causal - Adjective
      1: expressing or indicating cause : causative a causal clause introduced by since
      2: of, relating to, or constituting a cause the causal agent of a disease
      3: involving causation or a cause : marked by cause and effect a causal link
      4: arising from a cause a causal development
      Merriam-Webster [merriam-webster.com]

      Not sure why "admitting" that it's a causal link somehow makes you feel any better. A study claiming something to be causal actually makes some pretty strong claims (as opposed to admitting it being merely correlational).

      • (Score: 1) by MorbidBBQ on Thursday July 24 2014, @03:24PM

        by MorbidBBQ (3210) on Thursday July 24 2014, @03:24PM (#73294)

        oh damn...that engrish language was playing heads with my game.
        My bad; Casual != Causal.