Effects of maternal cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption on blood lead levels of newborns

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of cigarette smoking (active and passive exposure) and alcohol consumption during pregnancy on cord blood lead levels. In 1990, a survey was conducted in two hospitals in Québec City, Québec, Canada, a white-collar agglomeration. The sample included 430 mothers and their newborns. Information on the lifestyles of mothers during pregnancy was obtained by questionnaire. Cord blood lead concentrations were measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. A dose-response relation was found between cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption of mothers and cord blood lead levels. An average increase of about 15 percent (0.013 mumol/liter) in cord blood lead levels was estimated for every 10 cigarettes smoked per day. Mean blood lead levels in babies whose mothers did not smoke during pregnancy but who drank alcohol moderately was 17 percent higher than those of nonsmoking mothers who abstained from alcohol intake. Multivariate analyses revealed that both cigarette smoking and alcohol intake make significant and independent contributions to cord blood lead concentrations. Lifestyles of pregnant women thus appear to play an important role in the prenatal lead exposure of newborns. Because of the potential effects of lead exposure on pregnancy outcomes, our study provides further arguments to support public health advisories concerning the harmful effect of smoking and drinking alcohol during pregnancy.