No-one can say that smoking in pregnancy is a good idea. There is nothing healthy or risk-free about smoking in general, and certainly not when a woman is pregnant.
But the reality is that women smoke when pregnant - all the time. Some try to quit and are successful. Others believe that the stress of quitting is worse for the baby than the 9 months of smoking - a notion that is completely untrue.
Most pregnant women who smoke know deep down that it's not right. But the good news is that even if they can't or won't quit straight away, studies show that they have the first 15 weeks of pregnancy to quit before some real damage is done.
A recent study, published in the BMJ (British Medical Journal) recently found that the risks of premature birth and low birth weight were of those who never smoked at all, if the mother quit before the 15 week mark. This is wonderful news to pregnant women who are desperately trying to quit.
In researching two and half thousand pregnant women, scientists monitored the births of those who never smoked, those who quit by 15 weeks and those who didn't quit at all. The women who smoked throughout their pregnancies did have more premature and low weight babies than the others. But the women who quit by week 15 had similar birth statistics to those women who never smoked at all.
The studies also showed that the women who quit during pregnancy were no more stressed than the women who didn't quit at all.
Good news for pregnant women (and their babies!) and shows that it is well worth it to quit during pregnancy. The sooner the better, obviously, and it's far better to not smoke at all. But this study would suggest that women may have those first 15 weeks to quit - a long window of time that can do them - and their unborn babies - the world of good.
Tell Us
Did you smoke in pregnancy, or quit during? What is your advice for other women?
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I agree with the 'do no harm'. Being a want-to-be nonsmoker, this would certainly make me quit if I was pregnant. I certainly would not want my child to be inhaling with every cigarette I smoke.
April 4, 2009 - 10:24amIt takes time and effort to try and quit smoking but it is worth it in the long run for the baby as well as the mother. Going through a 'quit smoking obsession' right now, I would tell any pregnant mother to keep trying, it will ultimately lead to success.
This Comment
Great SHARE Susanc! I hope this information has an impact on those pregnant women who are still smoking. Smoking is not only a nasty and unhealthy habit but a baby should not have to be dragged into the addiction, especially by a nurturing, caring, loving mom who is providing the biological environment for the child to develop. We have too much medical data to ignore that dangers of smoking to a developing fetus. It is a moral obligation to "do no harm"!
April 3, 2009 - 11:35pmThis Comment
Susan,
What a wonderful SHARE.
My mother quit smoking when she was pregnant with me. She said it was very hard, but that she did it because she hoped that one day I would be proud of her for doing so.
This was before all the dangers of smoking were known, during the time period when smoking was seen as a "glamorous" thing to do among sophisticated and urbane people. All the Hollywood movies showed actors smoking all the time, and many teens and twentysomethings took up the habit to look cool and seem more grown up.
She's right -- I've always been proud that she did that for me. But I'm also proud that at 81, she is busy, happy, healthy and active.
If you quit, realize that your baby will be so proud of you when she or he grows up. And realize that you'll be here -- longer and healthier -- to see it all.
April 3, 2009 - 5:58pmThis Comment