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redqueen

(115,186 posts) Thu Sep 5, 2013, 05:38 PM Sep 2013

'Crack baby' study ends with unexpected but clear result [View all]

...

The investigators found one brain area linked to attention skills that differed between exposed and nonexposed children, but they could not find any clinically significant effect on behavioral tests of attention skills.

Drug use did not differ between the exposed and nonexposed participants as young adults. About 42 percent used marijuana and three tested positive for cocaine one time each.

The team has kept tabs on 110 of the 224 children originally in the study. Of the 110, two are dead - one shot in a bar and another in a drive-by shooting - three are in prison, six graduated from college, and six more are on track to graduate. There have been 60 children born to the 110 participants.

The years of tracking kids have led Hurt to a conclusion she didn't see coming.

"Poverty is a more powerful influence on the outcome of inner-city children than gestational exposure to cocaine," Hurt said at her May lecture.

...

http://articles.philly.com/2013-07-22/news/40709969_1_hallam-hurt-so-called-crack-babies-funded-study

50 replies

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'Crack baby' study ends with unexpected but clear result [View all] redqueen Sep 2013 OP

This is an honest researcher, to go where the data leads. "Poverty is a more powerful influence... Hekate Sep 2013 #1

Not really--over half the participants aren't accounted for, and when you eliminate preemies from msanthrope Sep 2013 #6

I agree. Crack babies are more likely to be born prematurely so it skews the data pnwmom Sep 2013 #26

They should have a different study to test crack bettyellen Sep 2013 #28

Illicit drug use, alcohol & tobacco, are significant risk factors for pre-term delivery and msanthrope Sep 2013 #29

I don't know why the outcome was unexpected Warpy Sep 2013 #2

It was a way to criminalize poverty and Cerridwen Sep 2013 #3

my first thought mercuryblues Sep 2013 #48

Sad but interesting data. Butterbean Sep 2013 #4

Had she compared them to other low birth weight, barely viable Warpy Sep 2013 #30

The kids I see withdrawing now take a lot longer than 48 hours. Butterbean Sep 2013 #40

So do heroin babies. 72 hour detox for them. Warpy Sep 2013 #43

I know, I can't believe meth babies survive, either. n/t Butterbean Sep 2013 #44

What happened to the other half of the kids in the original study? If you started with 224, but msanthrope Sep 2013 #5

Good question. Why don't you find an answer for the rest of us. Cerridwen Sep 2013 #8

Well, one expects answers to easy questions in the study itself. I find the whole "crack baby" msanthrope Sep 2013 #12

"One" also expects "one" to provide proof of "ones" Cerridwen Sep 2013 #13

One is expected to provide proof of one's questions? That's an awfully authoritarian msanthrope Sep 2013 #14

Authoritanism is embraced by DU. Cerridwen Sep 2013 #15

Wait, what? I am a bully now? For asking questions? Somebody better tell Hekate below that she is msanthrope Sep 2013 #17

Holy shit, you just can't win, can you? 7962 Sep 2013 #22

It's possible some would question my motivations for asking said questions. Fair enough, but msanthrope Sep 2013 #25

Why only study full term and near to term babies? Chellee Sep 2013 #23

Skew or disprove? See the problem? nt msanthrope Sep 2013 #24

So your suspicion Chellee Sep 2013 #34

Well--that's the problem right there. Scientific studies can't prove that msanthrope Sep 2013 #36

"preemies...got lopped off" Chellee Sep 2013 #39

Because premies have a plethora of problems. Warren Stupidity Sep 2013 #33

I know. I agree with you. Chellee Sep 2013 #35

The answer was in the artlcle. Mariana Sep 2013 #41

Good question--but sometimes subjects move away or drop out. It is voluntary, after all.... Hekate Sep 2013 #9

Oh--I agree that "crack baby" was as valid as "welfare queen" but what I am wondering about msanthrope Sep 2013 #11

Don't know. There are so many preemies these days, and for so many reasons. Hekate Sep 2013 #16

Yeah--but the kids we are discussing are 25 plus years old, not part of the current msanthrope Sep 2013 #18

You can probably track down other studies that specifically target them. Researchers really do want Hekate Sep 2013 #19

You bring up a good point about "level of exposure." Other than a blood test msanthrope Sep 2013 #21

They very likely moved out of the area Warpy Sep 2013 #31

do you really want to know Supersedeas Sep 2013 #42

Not surprising at all. One of the constants we see with the rapid advancement of scientific Egalitarian Thug Sep 2013 #7

That sentence in bold says it all: surrealAmerican Sep 2013 #10

that says it all heaven05 Sep 2013 #20

kick Liberal_in_LA Sep 2013 #27

Interesting. blackspade Sep 2013 #32

BUT----The Big American Question about this is... nikto Sep 2013 #37

The quote... nikto Sep 2013 #38

And we've known this for a long time. LWolf Sep 2013 #45

Duh? Yah think? nt bemildred Sep 2013 #46

Poverty and unemployment are the worst drugs of all, drugs forced onto the poor. ck4829 Sep 2013 #47

Despite the hysteria of the 90s, Crack Babies have proved... bvar22 Sep 2013 #49

Only 12 to college. What a tragedy. Barack_America Sep 2013 #50