Tobacco Use and Pregnancy
Women report that they smoke for a variety of reasons, including: to organize social relationships, create an image, control emotions, and as a form of social support and control. In the past, tobacco marketing targeted women, portraying smoking as glamorous, and also a way to control weight and stay thin. This type of marketing aimed to suggest body ideals specific to women, can encourage women to strive for unrealistic standards of beauty and thinness. 1
Some people may tell you that it is too stressful to quit smoking during pregnancy and that it is better to keep smoking, but this is not true. Continuing to smoke during pregnancy can lead to a higher risk of having a low birth weight baby, miscarriage, and birth complications. Smoking during pregnancy has also been linked to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
| If you cannot quit smoking when you are pregnant, focus on reducing the amount you smoke as you move towards quitting.
For couples who smoke, if possible, you and your partner should try to quit smoking at the same time. Couples who stop smoking together may be able to help each other remain smoke-free. It can be difficult to stop smoking when someone else in your home continues to smoke.
Quitting now and looking after your own health are the best ways to reduce the risk of harm to yourself and to your baby. It is never too late to stop smoking or using other substances.
Also, second hand smoke can cause health problems for women and their babies.
Most of the time, quitting is more successful with the support of smoking aids, and/or the support of your friends or family. You can increase your chances of successfully quitting smoking by getting smoking cessation counselling support, available free of charge from QuitNow Services. Smoking cessation medications, available either from your pharmacy or by prescription, can double, even triple a person’s success rate.
For more information about smoking cessation and programs available for you and your partner, consult with your family doctor, see www.HealthLinkBC.ca , or visit www.quitnow.ca and see the Resources section.
For more information on pregnancy and tobacco use, see Couples and Smoking and Baby’s Best Chance in the Resources section.
For more information on the risks and recommendations for the use of tobacco and other substances during pregnancy and breastfeeding, see Is It Safe for My Baby? in the Resources section.
For more information on Second Hand Smoke, see www.HealthLinkBC.ca
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| QuitNow Services
1-877-455-2233
www.quitnow.ca
Support and information on quitting smoking available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to BC residents. Counsellors can give specialized support to pregnant women.
Pregnets
www.pregnets.ca
The Pregnets website provides up-to-date information on stopping smoking for pregnant women and women with new babies. It also has a toolkit for health care professionals and an anonymous online discussion board.
Motherisk
1-877-327-4636
www.motherisk.org
Connected to Sick Children’s Hospital in Toronto, Motherisk provides online information on the risks of using substances (including tobacco) while pregnant. It also offers telephone counselling for women, and consultation for service providers.
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| Remember – quitting now and looking after your own health are the best ways to improve you and your baby’s health.
If you cannot quit smoking when you are pregnant, focus on reducing the amount you smoke as you move towards quitting.
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1 Greaves, L.J. and L.A. Richardson. (2007) Tobacco use, women, gender and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: Are the connections being adequately made? Pp. 675-679.
