What are some of the problems associated with smoking and pregnancy?
By smoking during pregnancy, women place themselves and their babies at risk for a number of serious health problems caused by tobacco. Women who smoke during pregnancy double their risk of having potentially life-threatening complications with the pregnancy. They are also 80% more likely to suffer a miscarriage than non-smoking pregnant women. In addition, the risks of having a stillborn baby or low birthweight are dramatically increased. Recent studies also suggest that smoking during pregnancy may increase the risk of preterm delivery by 30%. Other studies have suggested that regular exposure to second-hand smoke may also contribute to learning and behavioral problems, as well as birth defects, such as a cleft lip and/or cleft palate and mental retardation. Furthermore, research suggests that babies whose mothers smoked during pregnancy are more likely to die from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), than those whose mothers did not smoke. Help is available for pregnant women who sm
