Help for pregnant women who want to stop smoking: Breakthrough Fall 2004

At the Centre

If you are a woman and smoke, and have just learned you are pregnant, quitting smoking benefits not only you, but also your developing baby.

Last year, CAMH developed a tool to provide accurate information about pregnancy and quitting smoking. While designed for pregnant woman, healthcare professionals will also find much of use to help their clients who want to quit at this important time.

"Quitting smoking is not easy and bringing it up with healthcare providers can sometimes be difficult," says Dr. Peter Selby, project leader of PREGNETS and head of CAMH's Nicotine Dependence Clinic. "Although we strongly encourage women to speak with their healthcare provider, this toolkit is a great opportunity for both patient and doctor to address the challenges of quitting smoking during pregnancy."

Smoking during pregnancy is a major public health problem because it can lead to serious health problems in newborns and children. If a woman smokes during pregnancy she takes a chance with her baby's health. There is an increased risk of losing the baby during pregnancy. The baby could also be born too early, before the lungs are ready, so he or she may have trouble breathing. Also, the effects on the child's behaviour and attention span may not be detected until the child is much older.

The benefits of quitting smoking to both mother and child are significant. The baby will get more oxygen, his/her lungs will work better, is more likely to have a normal birth weight, is less likely to have colds and ear infections, may have fewer asthma and breathing problems and is more likely to be born nine months after conception.

To learn more about PREGNETS, or to learn about quitting smoking, visit the website at <www.pregnets.org> or talk to your doctor.

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