Should pregnant women be banned from smoking in light of new research?

[hunkermunker]

See here

"Nine out of 10 mothers whose babies suffered cot death smoked during pregnancy, according to a scientific study to be published this week. The study, thought to be one of the most authoritative to date on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), says women who smoke during pregnancy are four times more likely than non-smokers to see their child fall victim to cot death."

Personally, I find it very, very hard to understand why anybody smokes while knowingly pregnant. And yes, I know it's addictive. I speak as an ex-smoker, not somebody who has no idea what it's like to have a love affair with the evil weed.

anyway. this has all gone off on a bit of a tangent, sorry that was probably my fault.

i was just trying to make the point that just because someone smokes when they are pregnant, it doesn't mean we all have the right to criticise or judge. plenty of people don't follow guidelines - on weaning for example, or having babies cot in your room till they're 6 months. all guidelines are there because they help us to understand what is best for our babies. it doesn't mean you can make everyone follow them. ultimately it is up to the individual what they do with regards to their body and their baby.

as has been said before the only and best thing to do is to educate people of the dangers.

well they do die because of the formula, because if the formula manufacturers didn't give it away free until the mother's breastmilk had dried up, or didn't advertise it as being better than breastmilk, the babies wouldn't be dying would they? they would be breastfed.

sorry but nestle (et al) really get my goat.

Alethiometer:

Smoking is corrolated, along with lots of other thing - such as living in the West!

Maybe we should condemn all women who don't move to unpolluted environments when pregnant, or at least out of the city? Or tell all women who do live in the city not to go out and breathe the polluted air, full of nanoparticles and god knows what?

The odd fag seems a bit tame to be honest, in comparison to the filth we breathe in day to day in the city.

Isn't this just another attempt to say, "women are too lack brained know what's good for them (or their children) and we men sorts should give them a pointer; with quite serious penalties of course, or the daft mares won't learn anything"?

Nestle et al are indeed immoral, but formula also saves babies lives too! we have to remember that (mine was allergic to a constituent of BM, got to just over 4lbs at one point)

But not the same as smoking imo- whats that quote? 'Cigarettes are the only legal item that if used as intended is addictive and likely to cause ahrm'

or something like that.

A work last week a practice nurse was complaining because the doctors who own the practice would buy Nescafe because they boycott nestle products.

She said that she knew that lost of babies died in Africa but she did like her Nescafe.

..it's a mad, bad world.

that's wouldn't, not would

"morningglory... Why should you be allowed to "harm my pink lungs" ?

Surely I have just as much of a right to protect my lungs, and those of my loved ones as you have to poison yours ?"

HAHAHAHAHA. WHy do you assume that I smoke? Never have. Just am wary of people declaring things which are dangerously close to breaching civil liberties.

Smoking is an active choice. Inhaling pollution or ingesting pesticides is not.

We can't or shouldn't prosecute women for smoking when pg but they should - and I hope they do - face a lot of social opporbrium. And educating them is a must.

For example, most babies now sleep on their backs after education through cot death campaign began in the early nineties. Behaviour can be changed.

And parenting responsibility begins as soon as that baby is viable IMHO. Smoking is actively destructive with no benefits whatsoever.

To bring ff into the debate is daft and irrelevant. Formula saves lives. Breast is best. Yadda yadda. Smoking does nothing but damage and kill. To say it's a woman's choice when pg is not a defence of her civil liberties. It's an affront to everyone else's including her unborn child.

I'm really not that much of a self righteous prig as I sound. Honest!

Funny that

I have never seen "Formula kills" or "Formula can seriously damage your health" on the side of a packet of formula.....

Women who cannot BF suffer from another guilt without having to hear FF compared to smoking in pregnancy.

Get a bloody reality check.

Women are free to make a choice but anyone that chooses to smoke while pregnant and justifys it (I know some women on here have been very brave in owing up to the fact they are struggling to give up and having never smoked I cannot comment on how hard that must be especially if life is stressful but I would hope you would really try) should not be able to have babies.End of

The moral implications.... yes - the legal ones are clear - you can smoke, you can abort the child etc but morally you're guarding it and caring for it and have a duty to look after it as well as you can within reason. But some people are addicted to various things. My mother gave up smoking in 1961 when pregnant with me but smoked in the next 2 pregnancies, just couldn't give up again whereas my father did easily and immediately the same year.

I don't find it hard to understand why anyone smoked when pregnant at all. I've never smoked and I don't drink and I've never taken drugs but addictions are easy to understand and very hard indeed to cease.

Another thing...be very careful about jumping to conclusions, correlation does not equal causation.

yes make it illegal punishable by JAIL to eat:

• Raw Meats and Seafood including sushi - all uncooked and rare meats and seafood should be avoided due to high risk of listeria and salmonella poisoning.

• Deli meats including hot dogs - these deli meats might be contaminated with listeria bacteria which may result in miscarriage or even a stillbirth. It's safe to eat deli meats if you reheat them until steaming hot.

• Refrigerated smoked seafood - for the same reason of listeria contamination. It is safe if they are contained in cooked dishes. Canned and shelf-stable versions are safe to eat.

• Raw eggs - raw eggs may contain salmonella. Some Caesar salad dressings, mayonnaise, homemade ice cream and custards as well as Hollandaise sauces may be made with raw eggs. It is best to check with your server in a restaurant; if in doubt, it is best to avoid it. In addition, unpasteurized eggnog should be avoided.

• Fish high in mercury - avoid high-mercury fish such as Shark, Swordfish, King Mackerel and Tilefish. Also limit fish intake to no more than 2 servings per week. For more info - read Is it Safe to eat Fish during Pregnancy?

• Soft cheese - avoid the following soft cheeses: Feta, Brie, and Camembert cheeses, blue-veined cheeses, queso blanco, queso fresco and Panela. They are safe to eat if they are labelled pasteurized.

• Refrigerated pâtes or meat spreads - for the same reason of listeria contamination. It is safe to eat the canned or shelf-stable versions.

• Liver - liver is a rich source of iron. However it contains a high level of Vitamin A. Large amounts of Vitamin A can be harmful to the baby.

foods to avoid pregnancy what not to eat pregnant

• Unpasteurized milk and juices

• Alcohol - many documented fetal abnormalities and birth defects have been associated with alcohol use during pregnancy.

Well exactly MG.

That was the point I was making. Maybe I should have been more explicit.

I think banning it would be really counter productive. It'd be just another thing for already stressed out pregnant smokers to worry about...and probably cause them to smoke more! I think even pouring scorn on them is not going to work (though I think its deserved!) I think the best way to get everyone to stop smoking is to just bombard us with education about it. Huge billboards saying 'IF YOU SMOKE YOUR BABY IS MORE LIKELY TO DIE' everywhere, at every pub, club, bus stop, leaflets every where you can think of with key facts about how, and how often etc. Maybe that might encourage people to decide for themselves not to smoke, rather than feel forced or shamed into doing it, and resent giving up and so eventually smoke again, if they ever managed to give up in the first place

Custy, how many pregnant women do you think continue to eat/drink everything on your list deliberately when knowing the risks?

actually morning glory, whilst I think we agree on the not banning it, I do think the civil liberties of those who do NOT wish to smoke should be prioritise above those who do wish to smoke. Only because we cannot have both and it should realy be the healthier choice that zaps the poisonous one. But I am only speaking academically. I still think in reality, education is the only way forward.

i dunno scary - but i think they should be JAILED for eating sushi

scary made a good point, though, no sense in ignoring it. if women ate all the foods on your list, custy, and smoked, drank and took drugs... would you conclude that she didn't wish the child to live?

Would she be allowed to smoke if she were planning an abortion? What if she changed her mind? Could she still be prosecuted?

what would my conclusion matter?

can i just throw this into the mix - my friend was pregnant with dc3, didn't want to keep the child, for various very understandable reasons, and is a homeopath, so totally against any kind of intervention - such as an abortion. So she drank a bottle of vodka, and ate blue cheese non stop for a day. She had a miscarriage.

is anyone actually pro banning pregnant women from smoking, though? so what's the sense in talking about it as if we are? it's unadministrable, apart from anything else.

Just ban smoking full stop.

Not sure if anyone else is said that, lots of posts.

It's not enforcable and we don't have a guilt culture in this country which would make 'self regulation' effective. Unfortunatley these days people see their 'rights' as more important than anything else including how they affect others.

ineffective

i think its just really irresistible other-mum bashing - I am sometimes so sanctimonious about this kind of thing, that I even disgust myself. You should hear my about computer games / fizzt drinks / smacking children - I am an utter holier than thou cow. But I cannot stop spouting! I think this is what is kinda going on here a little bit. I'm totally and utterly joining in!