Maternal Cigarette Smoking During Pregnancy Has Long-Term Effects on Brain Development

Background: Fetal exposure to nicotine during pregnancy seems to alter brain development, including the nucleus accumbens and the hippocampus, and affect specific brain functions, such as learning and memory. Objective: To examine the longitudinal associations of maternal tobacco use during pregnancy and children’s brain morphometric subcortical volume and gray-white matter contrast development. Design: Cohort study. Methods: Children aged 9 to 10 years were analyzed at baseline (wave 1; October 2016 to October 2018) and at 2-year follow-up (wave 2; August 2018 to January 2021; aged 11 to 12 years) across 21 U.S. sites. A total of 11,448 participants in wave 1 and 9846 participants in wave 2 were eligible for participation. Results: Adolescents whose mothers smoked tobacco during pregnancy had a smaller caudate nucleus and reduced contrast between gray and white matter throughout the cerebral hemisphere. Additionally, these individuals had a smaller cerebellum and a smaller right nuc more...