A novel research has linked smoking in pregnancy to baby's brain development. The study outlined that mothers who indulge in heavy smoking during pregnancy are more likely to have kids who become criminal offenders later in their lives.

It highlighted that mothers smoking 20 cigarettes a day were found to render their child at a greater likeliness of growing up as repeat offenders with long time criminal record.

The study, published online in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health centered on factors such as mental ill health and deprivation which are deemed as the major reasons rendering children vulnerable to stick to criminal careers.

The child of a heavy smoker is third more vulnerable to have ever been arrested as adults because of any criminal indulgence.

The study involved over 4,000 adults, who were tracked until they were aged between 33 and 40. Besides, the study enrolled mothers between 1959 and 1966, and gathered information on their smoking habits during pregnancy.

The children from these pregnancies were checked for their criminal records when they reached 33 years of age.

"Women need interventions and encouragement to help them quit smoking, but they also need joined-up services and support to help them be the best parents they can", advised, Professor Kate Pickett, Department of Health Sciences, University of York.