Cocaine Use During Pregnancy Leads to an Earlier Use of Marijuana, Tobacco, and Alcohol in Offspring

There are a vast number of teratogens that have been proved to have effects on the offspring of a mother. Substance abuse is one of the more known teratogens with proven adverse effects on offspring. However, a new study may actually show that substance abuse, primarily cocaine use, can lead to an earlier initiation into marijuana, tobacco, and alcohol use than in offspring that were not exposed to cocaine in womb. Findings published in Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry have proven that adolescent initiation of tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use are strongly related to prenatal cocaine exposure (PCE). Controlling for other factors that may lead to an early onset of substance abuse, researcher were able to find a link between PCE and earlier initiation into substance abuse.

PCE occurs in about 1% to 18% of pregnancies. It has before been shown that PCE can have negative effects in behavior and cognitive development as well as low birth weight. The new study, however, also draws a connection between drug use in offspring. This study serves as a predictor in early onset drug abuse and dependence. According to the study, "[a]t 15 years, 40% of those offspring who were prenatally exposed to cocaine had initiated marijuana use and 46% had initiated alcohol use, compared to 16% and 31% of nonexposed offspring, respectively." The study was also able to prove that PCE dictated adolescent substance abuse more so than other factors such as substance abuse in families, lack of parental supervision, childhood maltreatment, and exposure to violence, suggesting a direct causal relationship with PCE and substance abuse in adolescence. 


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