The Generation R Study Group, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Department of Pediatrics, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000CA, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
The Generation R Study Group, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Department of Pediatrics, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000CA, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
Drug Alcohol Depend. 2021 Aug 1;225:108751. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2021.108751. Epub 2021 May 21.
Fetal exposure to cannabis and tobacco during pregnancy leads to adverse fetal and childhood outcomes. We hypothesized that fetal exposure to cannabis and tobacco have persistent programming effects on hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis functioning in childhood. Therefore, we examined the associations of parental cannabis and tobacco use during pregnancy with childhood hair cortisol and cortisone concentrations at 6 years, as biomarkers of long-term HPA-axis functioning.
In a population-based prospective birth cohort among 2577 mothers and their children, information of parental cannabis and tobacco use was collected by questionnaires, and maternal urine samples were additionally analyzed to detect cannabis metabolite concentrations. Cortisol and cortisone were measured in hair samples at 6 years. Linear regression analysis with adjustment for several confounders was used to test our hypothesis.
As compared to non-exposed children, offspring exposed to cannabis during pregnancy (in combination with tobacco) had higher childhood cortisol concentrations (log-10 transformed difference 0.16, 95 % Confidence Interval 0.04 to 0.28). This association was not mediated by birth weight. No differences in cortisone concentrations among cannabis-exposed children were observed. Maternal tobacco use during pregnancy was not associated with childhood cortisol or cortisone concentrations. Further, paternal cannabis or tobacco use was not associated with childhood cortisol or cortisone concentrations.
Our findings suggest that maternal cannabis use, combined with tobacco, during pregnancy is associated with alterations in offspring HPA-axis functioning. Further studies need to replicate these findings, and assess the causality and long-term consequences of these associations.
胎儿在孕期接触大麻和烟草会导致胎儿和儿童期不良结局。我们假设胎儿接触大麻和烟草会对儿童时期的下丘脑-垂体-肾上腺（HPA）轴功能产生持续的编程效应。因此，我们研究了孕期父母使用大麻和烟草与儿童 6 岁时头发皮质醇和皮质酮浓度的关系，这些浓度作为 HPA 轴功能长期变化的生物标志物。
在一个 2577 名母亲及其子女的基于人群的前瞻性出生队列中，通过问卷调查收集了父母使用大麻和烟草的信息，并额外分析了母亲的尿液样本以检测大麻代谢产物浓度。在 6 岁时，对头发样本进行皮质醇和皮质酮的测量。采用线性回归分析，并调整了多个混杂因素，以检验我们的假设。
与未暴露的儿童相比，孕期暴露于大麻（与烟草联合暴露）的儿童具有更高的儿童皮质醇浓度（对数转换差异为 0.16，95%置信区间为 0.04 至 0.28）。这种关联不受出生体重的影响。未观察到皮质酮浓度在暴露于大麻的儿童中存在差异。孕期母亲使用烟草与儿童皮质醇或皮质酮浓度无关。此外，父亲使用大麻或烟草与儿童皮质醇或皮质酮浓度无关。
我们的研究结果表明，孕期母亲同时使用大麻和烟草与后代 HPA 轴功能的改变有关。需要进一步的研究来复制这些发现，并评估这些关联的因果关系和长期后果。
