Scientists have detected cancer-causing chemicals associated with tobacco smoke in the urine of infants whose parents smoke.

The finding, detailed in the May issue of the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, supports the idea that persistent exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke in childhood can contribute to the development of cancer later in life, said study team member Stephen Hecht of the Cancer Center at the University of Minnesota.

“The take home message is, ‘Don’t smoke around your kids,’” Hecht said.

The researchers collected urine from 144 infants, aged 3 months to 12 months, who lived in homes where at least one parent was a smoker. Urine from nearly half of the infants contained detectable levels of NNAL, a chemical byproduct produced in the human body when it processes NNK, a cancer-causing chemical, or carcinogen, found only in tobacco.

Full story at LiveScience

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