shocking- deliberate smoking whilst pregnant

[MadameMorticiaMills]

In todays Guardian, report on smoking during pregnancy just to have a smaller baby. Are they for real? here

I had heard this sort of thing before but kind of dismissed it as a myth, that these were just tales, but apparently not.

[MadameMorticiaMills]

Actually, after reading it again I'm still not convinced that it's really true.

Scrap that then.

[HauntedsandCastle]

Yes, women do do this. My younger sister attended a teenagers ant-natal programme & many girls there smoked as they were told it could restrict that babies size! (my sister not being one of them....

[nailpolish]

but why would they want small babies?

i dont understand

[HauntedsandCastle]

they think it will make the labour easier & less painful. I.e birthing a 5lb baby as apposed to a 7lb baby. My sister asked my dad who obv said it was a load of swaddle. But 3 of the 8 girls were convinced of it. IO think she said one went on to have a 8lb-er tho!

[belgo]

I've heard of a pregnant diabetic woman smoking so that she'll have a smaller baby, as she was scared of having a big baby due to her diabetes

[schneeblysteinsmonster]

My sil did this

[TutterIckOrTreat]

more on story this morning:

Pregnant teenagers are deliberately smoking in the hope of having smaller babies so giving birth is easier, it has been reported.

Public health minister Caroline Flint spoke at a Labour Party conference fringe meeting about teenagers' attempts to reduce their labour pains, the Nursing Standard magazine reported.

Smoking can lead to low birthweight babies, meaning some teenagers smoke throughout pregnancy, the magazine said.

The Department of Health said Ms Flint had heard about the issue anecdotally from health professionals and young women she has met.

Ms Flint said: "It is important that we understand what stops young women making healthy choices so we can provide the right answers to their concerns.

"In this case, childbirth is no less painful if your baby is low weight. So smoking is not the answer, pain relief is."

Studies have shown that women who smoke during pregnancy are three times more likely to have a low birthweight baby. Smoking can also cause other problems, such as respiratory illness.

Women who smoke are less likely to carry their babies to full term and there is a 26% increased risk that they will miscarry or experience stillbirth.

Babies of smoking mothers are also an average of 200g (7oz) lighter at birth.

Royal College of Midwives (RCM) midwife Gail Johnson said there was no evidence that having a smaller baby reduced pain in labour. She said: "It is vital that the risks associated with smoking are highlighted and that women are then supported to make changes to their lifestyle but the RCM is very clear that there is no evidence that the size of the baby relates to the amount of pain the woman may experience."

[zippitippitoes]

tosh if you ask me

[Flamebat]

You've gotta be joking!!??

Are there seriously that many stupid women out there???

[HauntedsandCastle]

yes, seriously stupid teenage girls who wil believe anything IME!

[southeastastralplain]

it doesn't seem true, it just seems like another aricle to put down teenage mothers

[FillyjonkthePumpkinEater]

yes i know people who have done this

Of course it is

what they need to be told is the health risks, etc. A baby who is small due to inhaling nicotine pre-birth is much more likely to have health problems, cot death etc...Think the cold facts are needed here.

[zippitippitoes]

I think teenage mothers smoke because they smoke and have little motivation to give up, they mix with others who smoke and are not part of a baby directed peer group..they are part of a fun socialising youth group

[Flamebat]

Both stepsisters have just become teenage mums, and although possibly naive, neither of them would have done that!

[zippitippitoes]

and also by the time they come to terms/realise they are pregnant they are inclined to think I've been smoking up to now, it won't make any difference if I stop and my boyfriend smokes anyway

[QuootieSpookypie]

dont get me started! a cousin of DHs was pregnant, and the baby was very ill and she continued smoking throughout! It was born with a multitude of problems, and she now needs to give up smoking so she can give the baby a kidney - but isnt! Wasnt deliberate to make him ill... but selfish non the less!

[belgo]

The mum I know that smoked during pregnancy to have a smaller baby was not a teenage mum, but an office worker in her thirties.

[HauntedsandCastle]

I mentioned teenage mums as my sister was one & attened an anti natal group specifically for thus genre. I am not saying all teenage mums do it, my 2 sisters are proof enough that they don't. But these girls smoked because they thought it would decrease the weight. Even when my sister told 1 of them otherwise she told her she was jealous because she was haing a smaller baby!

[joelallie]

Weird! I was chuffed to bit when my babies were so big - I felt I'd acheived something . Anyway small size in that case is an indication of less than perfect health - like saying 'I drank like a fish all through pregnancy 'cos I wanted a baby with foetal alcohol syndrome"

I also remember hearing that larger babies are often easier to deliver because their size prevents them getting into daft positions prior ro birth - ie they have to be sitting head down as there isn't the space for them to do anything else.

[NotQuiteCockney]

Hmm, I suspect these people are mostly people who are smokers, and who would rather come up with any daft excuse, rather than quit.

[ScareyCaligulaCorday]

I suspect those involved are those who already smoke and as zippi says, have very low motivation to give up... not that women take up smoking when they're pregnant specifically in order to have small babies.

FWIW I did once know a woman who was in her late twenties and smoked and didn't give up, and she used to say she didn't see why she should, as she'd rather have a small baby, thank you very much. So selfishness and stupidity are not the reserve of teenage mothers.

[Beccarolloveragain]

I think part of it is that right from birth small (ie thin) is best.

You may think Im kidding but some people that I loosely mix with would consider a 8lb and up baby "fat" and of course no one wants to be fat.

Both my babies were lovely, healthy big bouncing babies and the amount of times I got negative "hes MASSIVE" "gutsy" "fatty" "how much you must have eaten when you were pregnant for him to get like that etc"

idiots

[Ellbell]

You can't win, can you Becca? I had a very small baby with dd1 and had people constantly asking me how I was feeding her (the implication being that perhaps I was starving her to keep her that small..???) and possibly suspecting me of smoking during pregnancy or other dastardly behaviour. But dd2 was a nice healthy bouncing babe (not particularly big, but certainly more 'rounded' compared to dd1) and had my MIL (!) say (in a sympathetic voice) 'What a shame... she's such an unattractive baby after dd1...'! WTF?

[belgo]

Good point Becca. Both my babies were about 7 and a half pounds and got called 'fat' by my mother in law.

[Ellbell]

LOL belgo... dd2 was 7.5lbs too... Do we share a MIL?