I have just one question about the new study titled "Childhood Behavior Problems Increased by Maternal Smoking During Pregnancy" in the Jan/Feb issue of the Archives of Environmental Health: Did the journal editors even read the study before publishing it?
As the title indicates, the study reports a statistical association between maternal smoking and behavioral problems in children. The authors go on to speculate that nicotine from maternal blood enters the fetal central nervous system, eventually leading to the alleged behavioral problems.
But the authors state: " Our experimental design did not allow us to infer causality."
Now, remember the title of the study: "Childhood Behavior Problems Increased by Maternal Smoking During Pregnancy."
Oh... I understand, the authors couldn't infer causality, but the editors could?
Beyond the editorial problem, the study has little merit. It is entirely based on self-reported data; the mothers self-reported their smoking habits and both parents self-reported their children's behavior. The result was a weak statistical association.
If the editors wanted to "fix" this study, they should have started with the protocol, not the title.
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