CLS October research highlights

A round-up of selected journal papers and other research published in October using CLS study data.

Hypertensive Disorders in pregnancy and Autism risk

A new paper using data from the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS) has investigated the link between hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and the risk of autism in children. This research was published in Molecular Neurobiology, and was carried out by a team of researchers based at University College Cork, including Eileen A.Curran and Gerard W. O’Keeffe. Their findings indicate that there is a significant association between hypertensive disorder and a twofold increased risk of autism at age 7. Read more here

Giving up smoking during pregnancy

Research using the National Child Development Study (NCDS) has looked at whether reduced smoking rates during pregnancy predicts smoking status of mothers in middle age. The paper, published in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, was authored by Danielle Schoenaker, George Ploubidis, Alissa Goodman and Gita Mishra. The results showed that women who reduced or quit smoking during pregnancy, up to the age of 33, were two times more likely to be non-smokers at age 55. Read more here

The benefits of private primary schooling on children’s learning

A new article published in the British Educational Research Journal examines data from the 1970 British Cohort Study, NCDS, and MCS. The team of UCL researchers, including Samantha Parsons and Francis Green, evaluated the influence that private primary schooling has on children’s learning. They looked at the children’s performance in cognitive assessments at age 5 or 7 and later at age 10 or 11. They found evidence of a link between private primary-school attendance and increased cognitive development when compared to peers who attended a public primary school. Read more here