The study, led by Kimberly Yolton, a researcher at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center in Ohio, included 4,400 children. Exposure to secondhand smoke was determined by testing for cotinine, a byproduct of nicotine in the blood.

Researchers determined that children exposed to the least amount of secondhand smoke scored an average of seven points higher in standardized math and reading tests, compared to children exposed to high levels of smoke. Children with the lowest environmental tobacco exposure also scored better on two types of reasoning tests.

The findings are in line with earlier research that found that tobacco exposure seemed to be related to impaired intellectual development.

The study's findings are published in the January 2005 issue of Environmental Health Perspectives.

Yolton, K., et al. (2005) Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke and Cognitive Abilities among U.S. Children and Adolescents. Environmental Health Perspectives, 113(1): 98-103.

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