New Study Explores Effects of Cocaine on Babies—15 Years Later

Does a mother’s cocaine use affect male and female children differently? An American university tries to find out.

Children whose mothers used cocaine in utero sometimes show no effects of the drug exposure—that is, until they are around 10 years old, researchers at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio say.

The university has received a grant of more than AUD$1,000,000 to study how this phenomenon—of behavioural problems like aggression and attention disorders—plays out differently in boys and girls.

The issues are particularly concerning because they are often indicators of future risk-taking, like drug use by the teens themselves.

“We can better understand how to prevent and treat children, specific to their gender, ages and stage of development, who may develop problem behaviours,” said Meeyoung O. Min, a research associate on the project.

Read the full article here: How does mothers’ cocaine use during pregnancy affect boys and girls differently?