I remember when I found out that I was pregnant with my youngest son, I stumbled upon the pregnancy forum on Baby Center. Baby center has a birth club for the birth month and year that my baby was due so that you could connect with mothers who were experiencing the same things that you were. It almost seems like yesterday that I was busy surfing through the forums and counting down the weeks until my baby was born. During those first few weeks, I saw countless posts about mother’s who were frantic because they found out they were pregnant. Most of these women didn’t realize that they were pregnant until they were half way through their first trimester and they wanted to know how harmful cigarette smoking could be for their baby. There is no right answer for this question because there are a number of various consequences for smoking during pregnancy. Here are some possible examples of possible complications from smoking during pregnancy:
- My baby was perfectly normal.
- I had a miscarriage.
- My baby had difficulty breathing after being born.
- I had my baby prematurely.
- My baby passed away from SIDS.
- My baby was born early.
- My baby was born with a birth defect.
- My child had frequent ear infections and has asthma as a toddler.
Disclosure: This post is for informational purposes only. Please talk to your OB/GYN or midwife if you have any questions or need help quitting smoking.
If you are currently pregnant or planning on getting pregnant it is best to try to quit smoking all together even if you have to slowly cut down on the number of cigarettes each day. Even if you cut down on smoking, your baby is still being exposed to the chemicals and the carbon monoxide is in your blood stream which decreases the amount of oxygen that your baby receives and lowers your baby’s risks.
12 comments
My mother was a smoker and a drinker when she was pregnant with me. I was born 2 months early, I am now 42 years old, but I have lots of lung and digestive issues. Please don’t be selfish and smoke. Think for your baby, besides, this is how the rest of your life is going to be from now on, not about you!
Cora thank you so much for sharing your experience. As a baby inside of the womb, you have no control over what your mother puts in her body. I hope that this posts helps other mom’s choose the best option for her baby and motivates her to stop smoking.
Watching my mom try to quit smoking (several times) made me realize just how hard it can be. I hope your post provides encouragement to pregnant women who want to quit smoking!
I have heard that it is very difficult to quit too. I recommend that anyone who is trying to quit smoking, to talk to their dr first. There is so much help today to help make quitting easier.
excellent tips! I didn’t smoke back in the day when I was pregnant. But for those out there who might find themselves in this position it is awesome information.
Thank you for stopping by.
Smoking when pregnant is certainly bad.. same as having 2nd hand smoke. Great tips that you have given and hope that smokers reconsider quiting if they are pregnant.
I hope that this post helps a new mom who is concerned about the effects of smoking during pregnancy. Thank you leaving a comment.
Great post! I was a smoker when I found out I was pregnant with my daughter. Once I found out, I stopped smoking…I was about 8 weeks pregnant. I felt so bad for smoking during those first several weeks of being pregnant…still do in fact.
That is awesome that you were able to quit smoking early on during your pregnancy April. Thank you for sharing your story for other moms. Don’t feel guilty, you did the best thing for your baby once your found out that you were pregnant.
For me smoking during pregnancy is just one big no-no. It’s simply not okay to smoke when you’re pregnant.
This is excellent, because you didn’t just say: “Stop smoking!”
You listed the reasons why, and you gave doable ways to stop. And you made it clear that it’s not all about stopping cold turkey!! Anytime is better than never!!
Excellent article. Great topic.