Image via video screenshot
Researchers from Durham and Lancaster universities had released disturbing ultrasound images of fetuses, comparing the difference between mothers who smoke and those who don't during pregnancy.
The researchers compared results from 80 ultrasounds of 20 babies between their 24th and 36th weeks of pregnancy—16 babies had non-smoking mothers, and four had mothers who smoked an average of 14 cigarettes a day.
The results show that babies whose moms smoked were seen covering their faces, and had higher-than-normal mouth and facial movements, which Telegraph calls “grimacing”.
This could be an indication that the fetal central nervous system of the babies who were not exposed to smoke did not develop at the same rate as those who were.
Lead author of the study, Dr. Nadja Reissland, said, “these results point to the fact that nicotine exposure per se has an effect on fetal development over and above the effects of stress and depression,” showing the negative effects of smoking.
Head over to Acta Paediatrica to see the results of the findings, or click here to read the full article.
Watch the video to watch the report by Telegraph.
Image via video screenshot
Image via Durham
[via Cosmopolitan]