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Smoking & Pregnancy

There are around 600 ingredients in a cigarette. When lit, a cigarette creates more than 7,000 chemicals of which many are harmful to our health. If you’re a smoker and pregnant, quitting is one of the best things you can do to protect your baby’s health.  Smoking can restrict the essential oxygen supply to your baby which means that their heart must beat harder every time you smoke.

Quitting smoking whilst pregnant will:

• Reduce the risk of complications in pregnancy and birth.
• Reduce the risk of stillbirth.
• Reduce the risk of your baby being born too early and have to face the breathing, feeding and health problems that often go with being premature.
• your baby is less likely to be born with a low birth weight. Babies of smokers are, on average, 200g (about 8oz) lighter than other babies, which can cause problems during and after labour. For example, they are more likely to have problems keeping warm and are more likely to get infections.
• Reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), also known as “cot death”.