• Weil Nutrition Corner
  • Meet Dr. Weil
  • Origins
  • Healthy Aging
  • Marketplace
  • Podcasts
  • Accessibility
  • Subscribe
Dr. Weil Logo Dr. Weil Logo Weil™ Andrew Weil, M.D.
  • Health & Wellness
    Health & Wellness
    Body, Mind & Spirit
    • Addiction
    • Allergy & Asthma
    • Autoimmune Disorders
    • Back Pain
    • Bone & Joint
    • Cancer
    • Colds & Flu
    • Dental & Oral
    • Diabetes
    • Disease & Disorders
    • Ears, Nose, & Throat
    • Feet
    • Gastrointestinal
    • Hair, Skin, & Nails
    • Headache
    • Heart
    • Insects & Parasites
    • Liver & Kidney
    • Mental Health
    • Pregnancy & Fertility
    • Respiratory
    • Sexual Health
    • Sleep Issues
    • Stress & Anxiety
    • Vision
    Balanced Living
    • Exercise & Fitness
    • Gardening
    • Healthy Home
    • Healthy Living
    • Meditation & Inspiration
    • Meet Dr. Weil
    • Pets & Pet Care
    • Technology
    • Wellness Therapies
    Health Centers
    • Aging Gracefully
    • Children
    • Condition Care Guide
    • Men
    • Women
  • Diet & Nutrition
    Diet & Nutrition
    Anti-Inflammatory Diet & Pyramid
    Cooking & Cookware
    Diets & Weight Loss
    Food Safety
    Nutrition
    Recipes
  • Vitamins, Supplements & Herbs
    Vitamins, Supplements & Herbs
    Herbs
    Supplements & Remedies
    Vitamins
  • Ask Dr. Weil
  • Blogs
    Blogs
    Bulletins
    Health Tips
    Spontaneous Happiness
  • Mushrooms
  • Sleep
Press "Enter" to search
Dr. Weil Logo Weil™ Andrew Weil, M.D.
  • Health & Wellness
    Health & Wellness
    Body, Mind & Spirit
    • Addiction
    • Allergy & Asthma
    • Autoimmune Disorders
    • Back Pain
    • Bone & Joint
    • Cancer
    • Colds & Flu
    • Dental & Oral
    • Diabetes
    • Disease & Disorders
    • Ears, Nose, & Throat
    • Feet
    • Gastrointestinal
    • Hair, Skin, & Nails
    • Headache
    • Heart
    • Insects & Parasites
    • Liver & Kidney
    • Mental Health
    • Pregnancy & Fertility
    • Respiratory
    • Sexual Health
    • Sleep Issues
    • Stress & Anxiety
    • Vision
    Balanced Living
    • Exercise & Fitness
    • Gardening
    • Healthy Home
    • Healthy Living
    • Meditation & Inspiration
    • Meet Dr. Weil
    • Pets & Pet Care
    • Technology
    • Wellness Therapies
    Health Centers
    • Aging Gracefully
    • Children
    • Condition Care Guide
    • Men
    • Women
  • Diet & Nutrition
    Diet & Nutrition
    Anti-Inflammatory Diet & Pyramid
    Cooking & Cookware
    Diets & Weight Loss
    Food Safety
    Nutrition
    Recipes
  • Vitamins, Supplements & Herbs
    Vitamins, Supplements & Herbs
    Herbs
    Supplements & Remedies
    Vitamins
  • Ask Dr. Weil
  • Blogs
    Blogs
    Bulletins
    Health Tips
    Spontaneous Happiness
  • Mushrooms
  • Sleep
  • Weil Nutrition Corner
  • Meet Dr. Weil
  • Origins
  • Healthy Aging
  • Marketplace
  • Podcasts
  • Accessibility
  1. Home
  2. Health & Wellness
  3. Body, Mind & Spirit
  4. Pregnancy & Fertility

Does Mother's Smoking Lead to Obese Kids?

I always thought that smoking during pregnancy could lead to low-birth-weight babies, but now I hear that when expectant women smoke, their children are actually at increased risk of obesity. Which is right?

Andrew Weil, M.D. | June 11, 2013

Woman hands holding cigarette outdoor.
2 min

Both are right, and they are not the only damaging consequences of smoking during pregnancy. In the first place, women who smoke have a harder time getting pregnant. And women who continue to smoke after becoming pregnant risk damaging their babies’ developing organs by exposing them to nicotine, carbon monoxide and tar, which can reduce the amount of oxygen the growing baby gets. Smoking is also associated with premature birth, birth defects, low birth weight and reduced height and head circumference. Prematurity and low birth weight carry higher risks of cerebral palsy, learning problems, intellectual disabilities and, rarely, early death.

On top of that, there is little doubt that when mothers smoke during pregnancy, their children have a 50 percent higher risk of childhood obesity, according to a review from Harvard of 14 studies of this subject. Most of the investigations focused on kids between the ages of three to seven, but one assessed obesity status at age 14 and another followed the kids to young adulthood. This last study was published in the International Journal of Obesity in February, 2008.

So far, we don’t know why the underweight babies of smoking mothers have a higher than normal risk of growing into chubby kids and obese teens, but a study from Canada published in 2012 suggested an explanation. Researchers in Quebec recruited 378 teens and grouped them on the basis of those whose mothers smoked more than one cigarette a day during pregnancy and those whose mothers didn’t smoke at all for a year before becoming pregnant and during pregnancy. The teens whose mothers smoked during pregnancy weighed less at birth and were breastfed for a shorter period of time, the researchers found. They also reported that the teens whose mothers smoked during pregnancy grew into a slightly higher body weight and body mass index, even after the investigators adjusted for age, sex, and height. The difference remained significant after adjustments for lower birth weight, shorter duration [or lack of] breastfeeding, and lower socioeconomic status.

Possibly, “subtle structural variations in the brain” in kids whose mothers smoked during pregnancy created a preference for calorie-dense foods. The researchers also found on MRIs that the teens exposed to smoking before birth had “significantly lower volume of the amygdala” (the part of the brain that processes emotions and stores memories); the lower the volume of this brain structure, the greater the consumption of fat. The study was published online on September 3, 2012 by the Archives of General Psychiatry.

Andrew Weil, M.D.

Advertisement
Related Weil Products

Dr. Weil on Healthy Aging for Men's Health

Dr. Weil on Healthy Aging for Men’s Health – Help keep your prostate healthy with simple changes to your lifestyle and diet. Learn more – and get access to an exclusive version of Dr. Weil’s Anti-Inflammatory Food Pyramid – start your free trial of the Dr. Weil on Healthy Aging online guide today!
Get Started
Dr. Weil on Healthy Aging

Start Your 14-Day Free Trial

Free Newsletters

Stay Connected With Dr. Weil

Anti-Inflammatory Diet

Follow Dr. Weil’s Food Pyramid

Get Dr Weils Newsletter Updates

Exclusive Lifestyle, Nutrition & Health Advice

Dr. Weil's FREE health living advice delivered to you!

By clicking "Subscribe," you agree to the DrWeil.com Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy. You also agree to receive emails from DrWeil.com, and you may opt out of DrWeil.com subscriptions at any time.

Trending Now

Young pharmacist with a digital tablet in drug store checking medicines on the shelf
Pregnancy & Fertility

A Better Birth Control Pill?

Asian couple during visit at doctor's office, horizontal
Pregnancy & Fertility

A Contraceptive Danger?

Container for tubes of biochemical analyzer
Pregnancy & Fertility

A Magical Route to Pregnancy Via IVF?

home births safe
Pregnancy & Fertility

Are Home Births Safe?

Dr. Weil Logo Weil™ Andrew Weil, M.D.
Dr. Weil's Signature

Exclusive Lifestyle, Nutrition & Health Advice

  • About Us
  • Press Information
  • Advertising
  • Contact Us
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Accessibility

Terms of Use | Privacy Policy

Information on this website is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other healthcare professional. You should not use the information on this website for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing any medication or other treatment. Any third party offering or advertising on this website does not constitute an endorsement by Andrew Weil, M.D. or Healthy Lifestyle Brands.

© Copyright 2025 Healthy Lifestyle Brands, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. www.drweil.com