WEDNESDAY, July 13, 2022 (HealthDay News) — According to a study published online July 6 in JAMA Psychiatry.

Alexandra Havdahl, Ph.D., of Lovisenberg Diaconal Hospital in Oslo, Norway, and her colleagues recruited parents from June 1999 to December 2008 in the Norwegian Mother-Father-Child Cohort Study and derived from polygenic scores (PGS) for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism and schizophrenia in mothers and fathers. Associations between maternal PGS and 37 pregnancy-related measures were estimated and compared to those of paternal PGS predicting paternal measures. Data were available for 14,539 mothers and 14,897 fathers.

The researchers observed modest but robust associations between specific pregnancy-related measures and maternal PGS, including ADHD PGS with asthma and smoking (odds ratios, 1.15 and 1.26, respectively) , body mass index (BMI) before pregnancy and weight gain during pregnancy (β = 0.25 and 0.20, respectively), and taking folate and not taking supplements (odds ratios, 0 .92 and 1.09, respectively). Associations were observed for PGS schizophrenia with coffee consumption and smoking (odds ratios, 1.09 and 1.12, respectively) and with prepregnancy BMI and pregnancy weight gain (β = -0.18 and 0.17, respectively). The PGSs for ADHD, autism, and schizophrenia were all associated with symptoms of depression/anxiety (odds ratios, 1.15, 1.13, and 1.13, respectively). For maternal and paternal PGS, the associations were largely consistent, with the exception of ADHD PGS and smoking (fathers: odds ratio, 1.13).

“Our results suggest that pregnant women with a high genetic responsibility for ADHD or schizophrenia are at increased risk for pregnancy-related adverse exposures,” the authors write.

Several authors disclosed financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry.