Health campaign to target pregnant smokers

London, February 5: Smoking can be harmful to both mum and baby during pregnancy. A new government campaign launched by NHS seeks to help pregnant smokers get rid of their habit.

The new campaign hopes to raise awareness of the immediate health benefits of quitting smoking for both mother as well as the baby in the womb. The new scheme provides mums-to-be with understanding, not judgment.

The scheme would offer an incentive of £100 in food vouchers to encourage pregnant women to quit smoking.

According to an NHS poll, nearly 20 percent of women smoke during their pregnancy. NHS Smokefree will be running a series of advertisements to highlight the impact of smoking on the development of babies’ hearts. The poll revealed that one in third women smoke during pregnancy – which equals to about 100,000 women at any one time.

According to figures from 2005, nearly a third of women smoke before becoming pregnant, however, around half of these manage to overcome their obsession towards smoking when they become pregnant.

The government aims to reduce the percentage of pregnant women smokers down to 15 percent by the year 2010.

A poll of 224 pregnant women revealed that nearly 28 percent were willing to seek expert advice to overcome this habit but felt reluctant for the fear of being judged.

The survey further revealed that nearly 38 percent of pregnant women admitted the fact that they hid their smoking for the fear of being criticized, while 39 percent felt ashamed to admit their habit to their midwife or healthcare professional.

Celebrity doctor Miriam Stoppard, who is leading the NHS campaign in England, felt, “Pregnant women who smoke do not automatically find it easy to stop smoking as soon as they become pregnant, often hiding their smoking rather than asking for help to quit, because they feel that they will be criticized.”

Health chiefs had been warning pregnant women of the harmful effects of smoke on the babies that starves the unborn of oxygen every time they take a puff, causing its tiny heart beat harder.

It is crucial to stop pregnant women from smoking, feels help to quit pregnancy specialist nurse Helen Holdroyd.

“Every cigarette smoked restricts the essential oxygen supply to the unborn baby,” she explained, “so it's really important that women do remember that, and [that] there is support and help to stop them smoking.”

The effects of smoking while pregnant can be widespread. Babies born to women, who smoke during pregnancy, are approximately 200 grams lighter than other babies. Smoking causes 250 ml reduction in breast milk production of mothers.

Moreover, pregnant smokers are at a greater risk of various complications including spontaneous abortion, bleeding, premature detachment of the placentadefine and even ectopic pregnancy. Smoking during pregnancy increases the probability of a stillbirth or death of a baby during the first four weeks of life by one-third.

Laura, a mum from Telford, who smoked when she was pregnant with her son, quit smoking benefitting from NHS stop smoking service for pregnant women.

“I had one-to-one support, all the time it was there constantly,” she said.

“I had their phone numbers so even when I had that minute craving I could just send them a little text if I needed, if I felt like I was falling back a bit I could phone them.”

Laura feels there is a need for change in public attitudes for schemes to win the complete battle. “Instead of people judging you they should be encouraging you and explaining to you the support [available].”