Philadelphians find Smoking Leads to Bad Grades

Philly students with the worst grades have a much higher rate of tobacco exposure and experimentation. Researcher Dr. Salvatore Mangione studied students in 65 Philadelphia public schools and found that if a child grows up with smokers, he is much more likely to experiment with tobacco. Tobacco exposure, active or passive, triggers asthma, and asthma causes absenteeism in children, which can lead to poor grades.

Source: American College of Chest Physicians, news release, Oct. 29, 2003

Parents Smoking and SIDS

Smoking by parents is associated with a wide range of adverse effects in their children, including exacerbation of asthma, increased frequency of colds and ear infections, and sudden infant death syndrome.

Source: American Lung Association Fact Sheet: Smoking, 2004

Secondhand Smoke Pollutes Baby's World

Secondhand smoke exposes children to the equivalent to several hours of active adult smoking. Parents who smoke outdoors do not fully protect their children from the harmful effects of tobacco smoke, but it was much worse when they smoked indoors. Cigarette smoke is quickly absorbed into walls, floors, furniture, clothes, toys, etc. The chemicals from the smoke are then re-cycled into the air, causing ongoing contamination. Infants are at
particular risk, because during the first year of life, they spend a great deal of time indoors, close to contaminated sources.

Smoking Mothers and Children with Behavioral Problems

Mothers who smoke during or after pregnancy appear to increase the chance that their children will suffer from behavioral problems such as depression, anxiety, trouble in school or impulsive acts, a 1992 study suggests. The study found that children of mothers who smoked more than a pack a day after pregnancy had double the risk of being among the 10 percent of youngsters in the survey who had extreme behavioral problems.

Source: Weitzman, M. "Maternal Smoking and Behavior Problems of Children”, The Journal Pediatrics 90,3 (Sep 92) 342-349).