Study Description

During pregnancy, the developing infant is exposed to nearly everything the mother is exposed to. How these exposures impact the the child’s health after birth is still poorly understood. The Healthy Baby Brains Study is a new research study at the University of Alberta. Our goal is to identify any links between maternal exposures including cannabis, home environment, sleep quality, and air pollution during and after pregnancy, and child health. We are looking for women that are pregnant to join our study and participate until their children are 18 months old. We need to recruit women who use cannabis and those that do not. You will be asked to fill out questionnaires at several times during and after pregnancy, and we will test home air quality. We will provide a ring for you to wear that measures sleep quality. You will also be asked to donate urine from yourself and your child, and if possible, breastmilk samples. Your child will receive a developmental assessment by our team at 18 months.

The results of this study will provide doctors, families and researchers with important information about pregnancy. It will help doctors provide information for families, help families make important decisions during pregnancy, and will help in the design of future research studies.

We are currently looking for study participants!

Study Status:    Ongoing

Study funding: Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Contact: 

• Research Coordinator:  Lesley Brennan, PhD

Ph: (587)-334-7970 

       E-mail: babybrains@albertahealthservices.ca

** UPDATE  July 2022 ** Our team has been awarded additional funding from CIHR to extend this study so that we may follow children to 3 years of age.  This will add a tremendous amout of information to the Canadian literature and help many families make important decisions.