While researchers have long agreed that secondhand smoke can negatively affect children, causing breathing difficulties, asthma and other respiratory ailments, a new study reveals a link between a substance in nicotine and learning disorders. The study, which is being published today in Environmental Health Perspectives, indicates that children who are exposed to secondhand smoke often test lower in reading, math, and problem solving.

The study, which was conducted by the Cincinnati Children’s Medical Center, considered the levels of contine, an element that is produced when the body processes nicotine. 4,339 children between the ages of 6 and 16 were examined and tested in this study. The children who were exposed to higher levels of smoke tested 7 points lower on standardized math and reading tests than those who were not.

Kimberly Yolton, lead author of the study, points out that nearly 33 million children are at risk for learning problems caused by what she calls “environmental tobacco.”

Michael Shannon, chairman of American Academy of Pediatrics' Committee on Environmental Health, sees the results of this study as further evidence that smoking in public should be banned and insurers should step up coverage for persons who want to quit. He also points out that for children, tobacco is as detrimental to their brains as is lead, and that fetuses are also affected by tobacco.