Smoking While Pregnant May Raise Autism Risk

If any expectant mom needed yet more evidence that smoking is a bad idea, here it is: Doing so during pregnancy raises the risk of having a child with Asperger's or another kind of autism, a new study suggests. Researchers analyzed data from about 630,000 kids born in the 1990s in 11 states. The link seems strongest with the less severe forms of autism on the spectrum disorder, reports LiveScience.

"The study doesn’t say for certain that smoking is a risk factor for autism," says the lead author. "But it does say that if there is an association, it’s between smoking and certain types of autism." (More smoking stories.)