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Smoking During Pregnancy Causes Genetic Damage
Smoking during pregnancy can damage the chromosomes of the developing fetus, putting the child at increased risk of certain cancers and other problems.
Researchers from the Universitate Autonoma de Barcelona looked at fetal cells gathered during amniocentesis from 25 women who smoked at least 10 cigarettes daily during pregnancy, and compared them to cells taken from 25 nonsmokers. They found that 12.1 percent of the cells from smokers had structural chromosomal anomalies, compared to 3.5 percent among the nonsmokers.
The most common damage was at a spot on chromosome 11 associated with leukemia and other blood cancers.
The study was the first to show smoking-related damage to fetal epithelial cells, experts said. It was published in the March 9, 2005, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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