481 MATERNAL SMOKING MAY IMPAIR EETAL NUTRITION

Abstract

Cigarette smoking by pregnant women is known to significantly reduce birth weight of their babies. The effect appears dose-related. The mechanism is uncertain. We have shown previously that maternal plasma nutrient & amino acid levels, & some polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMNL) enzyme & metabolite levels at midpregnancy are closely related to, predictive of, & account for, about 20% of the variance in birth weight of the baby. In a prospective study of ∼600 mother/baby pairs who had complete demographic & biochemical data, 294 mothers were non-smokers, 285 smoked. Birth weight, adjusted for gestational age & sex of the baby, & for race, age, prepregnant height, weight, & parity of the mother, was significantly reduced in proportion to the number of cigarettes reportedly smoked daily. A two-tailed t test showed that smoking mothers had significantly decreased PMNL G6PDH activity, ATP & ADP levels. Hair root protein content was reduced, as were plasma total protein, albumin, β & γ globulins, & cholesterol. The levels of plasma free amino acids ALA, CYS & LYS also were significantly reduced. Analysis of variance showed significant differences between standardized scores for nonsmokers & those who smoked 1-10, 11-20, 21-30, > 30 cigarettes/d for education, hematocrits, diet calorie & protein intakes (recall), PMNL G6PDH & ATP, hair root protein & DNA, plasma total protein, α 2, β & γ globulin, & the amino acids: GLU, LYS, HIS, & ORN. We conclude that smoking during pregnancy alters maternal plasma nutrient levels, protein stores & cell PMNL metabolism. These nutritional effects might account for the reduced birth weight.

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