Smoking during Pregnancy Affects Speech Processing in Newborns

There is a wealth of information about infants being targeted adversely by smoking mothers-to-be. There are numerous dangers associated with prenatal effects of smoking on infants like emotional disorders (depression and anxiety), premature births, low weighing unhealthy births, miscarriages or still births.

Studies also go onto prove that smoking during pregnancy has a direct impact on the infants learning and developing capabilities. For example, smoking can disable a newborns language and speech skills, impair his or his understanding of mathematical calculations, and also affect his or her visual and spatial abilities.

How does smoking affect speech processing in newborns?

Smoking during pregnancy is harmful for infants because it restricts the amount of oxygen being transported from the mother’s blood into the placenta and then into the baby. This is contributed by the narrowing down of the blood vessels and harmful toxins like carbon monoxide affecting the bloodstream. Oxygen is absolutely essential for the proper development of the fetus which is blocked by smoking.

Studies prove that smoking during pregnancy affect infants in such a way that newborns begin their discrimination process quiet late (150msec later). As a result newborns are able to distinguish between fewer syllables and also differentiate between fewer stimuli (Source).

Hence smoking mothers-to-be should understand what dangers they are exposing their own infants to. Prenatal smoking is seriously associated with certain changes in the brain physiology of newborns which are directly associated with their basic perceptual skills. As a result these tiny lives become vulnerable to developing greater risks in the near future.

2 Responses to “Smoking during Pregnancy Affects Speech Processing in Newborns”

  1. Bill Philips Says:
    March 2nd, 2008 at 11:37 pm

    yo yo this info was fantastic-o

  2. Smoking in Pregnancy can Damage Child Arteries Says:
    December 26th, 2008 at 7:10 am

    [...] Children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy faced more damage to their arteries in their young adulthood as compared to children of non-smoking mothers. The problem was heightened if both the parents smoked. Researchers from Netherlands reported these findings in Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology: Journal of the American Heart Association. [...]

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