Active and passive tobacco smoke exposure: A comparison of maternal and child hair cotinine levels

Abstract

The objective of this study was to compare tobacco smoke exposure in mothers and their healthy children less than 3 years old using hair cotinine (HC) levels as an objective long-term measure of exposure. Hair samples were obtained from mother/child pairs recruited from the Columbus Children's Hospital Primary Care Center, and were analyzed by radioimmunoassay to compare HC levels. Mothers were both self-reported smokers and nonsmokers. Contributing and confounding variables were assessed based on questionnaires completed by participants. Exclusion criteria for children were prematurity and presence of chronic cardiopulmonary disease. Hair samples and questionnaires were obtained from 104 mother/child pairs. Child and maternal HC levels were correlated for both self-reported maternal smokers (R2 = .13, p < .013) and self-reported maternal nonsmokers (R2 = .54, p < 001). Child HC levels were higher than maternal HC levels (1.18 ng/mg vs. .78 ng/mg, p < .001). Children of nonsmokers had higher HC levels than their mothers (.77 ng/mg vs. .35 ng/mg, p < .001), while HC levels of smokers and their children were no different (1.91 ng/mg vs. 1.92 ng/mg, p = .978). The relationship between child and maternal HC did not differ by child age, gender, or race. In conclusion, environmental tobacco smoke exposure in young children as reflected by HC is higher than expected based on prior studies of biomarkers and passive tobacco smoke exposure in adult nonsmokers.

Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Hair Nicotine in Children: Age-Dependent Differences

“…Age appears to play a role in other biomarkers of SHS. We previously found that hair cotinine levels of infants were as high as their actively smoking mothers and higher than nonsmoking mothers ( Groner et al, 2004 ). Saliva cotinine has also been reported to be higher in younger than older children ( Delpisheh, Kelly, & Brabin, 2006 ) and National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III data ( Wilkinson, Arheart, & Lee, 2006 ) similarly show an inverse relationship between age and serum cotinine.…”

Prevalence and correlates of environmental tobacco smoke exposure among adolescents in Mangolia

“…17,18 Other samples such as hair, toe and finger nails could be used to validate reports of long term exposure. [19][20][21][22] However, the present study used a standardized questionnaire that enables within country and cross-country comparisons of ETS exposure. Secondly, the sample was recruited from school-going adolescents and therefore may not be representative of all adolescents in the study area.…”

Recent Contributions of Air- and Biomarkers to the Control of Secondhand Smoke (SHS): A Review

“…show that in the private domain (home), currently the main location of exposure to SHS, even if it is decreasing [72] (but not everywhere [109]), individual voluntary measures of protection are needed and complete control is obtained only with a total non-smoking policy at home or, but with lower efficacy, by allowing smoking exclusively outside the home, in order to protect children, who are particularly sensitive to SHS [53–55,75,79,111]. In cars, levels of nicotine and PM 2.5 are high and not fully controlled by ventilation.…”

“…In general, child hair cotinine levels were higher than maternal levels (1.18 ng/mg versus 0.78 ng/mg, p < 0.001). Levels in children of nonsmokers were higher than maternal levels (0.77 ng/mg versus 35 ng/mg, p < 0.001) while levels were not different between smokers and their children (1.91 ng/mg versus 1.92 ng/mg, p = 0.978) [75]. Geometric means of hair nicotine of pregnant women are the lowest (0.33 ng/mg) when the spouse is not smoking (A), intermediate (0.51 ng/mg) when the spouse is a smoker not smoking in the home (B) and 0.58 ng/mg when the spouse is smoking in the home (C).…”