Is Paternal Smoking at Conception a Risk for ADHD? A Controlled Study in Youth With and Without ADHD

Objective:Based on emerging preclinical findings suggesting that paternal smoking at conception may be a risk for ADHD in the offspring, we investigated whether a similar effect can be observed in humans.Method:We analyzed data from an opportunistic dataset of girl probands with (N= 140) and without (N= 122) ADHD with available information on paternal smoking at conception. Data were analyzed using Pearson's chi-square tests and multiple logistic regression.Results:ADHD probands had a significantly higher rate of paternal smoking at conception than controls (35% vs. 23%, chi(2)= 3.82,p= .05) with a significant odds ratio of 1.5. However, the association lost significance after controlling for paternal ADHD, most likely due to limited statistical power.Conclusion:While preliminary, findings suggest that paternal smoking at conception may be a risk factor for ADHD in the offspring.