Exposure to tobacco smoke 'may cause ADHD'

A number of studies have been conducted recently attempting to discover the social causes of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), with many experts pointing to a child's upbringing as the root of the problem.

Now, a new study has added weight to the argument, after claiming that youngsters and babies in the womb who are exposed to cigarette smoke may have a greater risk of developing the condition.

Specialists at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center in the US told private health cover holders that the chances of a person developing ADHD are "particularly high" if they were in a smoky environment when children, or if they often came into contact with lead.

The study was led by Tanya Froehlich, a physician in the division of developmental and behavioural paediatrics at the facility, who said up to 35 per cent of ADHD cases in children between the ages of eight and 15 could be prevented by eliminating exposure to both things.

She commented: "Tobacco and lead exposure each have their own important adverse effect. But if children are exposed to both lead and prenatal tobacco, the combined effect is synergistic."

The study showed that children exposed prenatally to tobacco smoke were 2.4 times more likely to have ADHD and also revealed that those with high levels of lead in the blood had a 2.3 fold increased likelihood of the disorder.

Dr Froehlich and her colleagues told medical health insurance customers that the risk of ADHD was more than eight times higher for children exposed to both tobacco and lead compared to unexposed children.

Fellow author Dr Robert Kahn, a physician and researcher at Cincinnati Children's Hospital, commented: "Although we tend to focus on ADHD treatment rather than prevention, our study suggests that reducing exposures to environmental toxicants might be an important way to lower rates of ADHD."

By Stephen Tate

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