Unplanned Pregnancy as a Risk Factor for Involuntary Tobacco Exposure in Children from Inner-City Families

Background: Unplanned pregnancy has been related to a number of negative social and health consequences for mothers and children, but no study has ever examined the role of this factor in altering the likelihood of involuntary environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure in children.

Methods: Data were derived from a project on tobacco exposure and child lung function. In-person interview was conducted to obtain data on ETS exposure in children (if exposed to daily smokers in a close area at home in the past year) from mothers (one child per mother) who companied their children to Children's Hospital of Michigan, Detroit, MI.

Results: Among 399 children aged from 6 to 10 (mean=8.0, SD=0.85), 210 (52.6%) were male, 325 (82.1%) were black, 125 (31.3%) were unplanned, and 129 (32.3%) exposed to ETS. Smoking parents (98.5%) were the primary ETS source at home. The ETS exposure rate was 25.6% for planned children and 47.2% (Χ²=18.4, p<.001) for unplanned children. Multiple logistic regression controlling for an array of covariates (maternal age, race/ethnicity, maternal education, income, marital status, age of delivery, number of survival children and children's age, gender, and birth order) indicated that beside the known relationships of marital status, maternal education, and income, unplanned pregnancy was positively associated with ETS exposure (OR = 1.82, 95% CI: 1.10, 3.0).

Conclusion: Unplanned pregnancy, a significant problem in the United States, substantially and independently increases the risk of ETS exposure in children. These findings imply the need for the consideration of this factor in ETS preventions.