Smoking when pregnant.

by Moomin 16 Replies latest jw friends

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  Moomin

  On the radio today they spoke about people who smoke when pregnant. A woman rang in and said it was probably absolutely fine as her mum smoked when pregnant with her and she turned out alright?!?

  The news was that some young mothers-to-be are deliberately smoking as they heard that it will make the babies smaller and therefore easier to give birth to.

  Some say that the body suffers a great deal when giving up, so it is better to wait until after giving birth.

  I was wondering, despite the risk of any other medical defects, do you think that the unborn baby becomes addicted to the nicotine itself, so after the birth the baby has to deal with the withdrawal symptoms?
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  daystar

  The physicians, OBGYN, etc. we spoke with when my ex-wife was pregnant with our son, all said that as she was a 1-pack a day smoker, it would be best not to quit entirely due to the withdrawal, but to cut down fairly dramatically.

  Our son came out with an appropriate weight and was fine.
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  misanthropic

  I'm not sure about the baby developing a nicotine addiction, I wouldn't doubt that. But I know MANY babies born to mothers who smoked while pregnant were born with severe lung problems. From everything I've ever heard here, it's strongly urged for any pregnant woman to quit right away. I have several friends who started smoking while pregnant to not gain weight, so sad.
• 

  Ellie

  I heared this too, and found it quite shocking that some teenage mothers smoke while pregnant to deliberately increase their chance of having a smaller baby in the hope that it will be a less painful labour, especially when its supposed to be the other way round, the bigger the baby the easier the birth.

  I know a woman who smoked while pregnant and her baby was born a week overdue and weighing only 6lb something, and with an under developed pancrease (is that how you spell it?).

  She said all along that she didn't see the point in quitting, that it would do no harm, wonder if shes quite so sure of that now.

  But as for the baby becoming addicted to nicotine, I don't know but would guess that yes, they would probably have a slight addiction and maybe cry more than most newborns.

  On a similar note, news out today is that breastfed babies turn out to be more inteligent than formula fed babies but only because the mums tend to be more inteligent in the first place, quite controversial I should imagine, and my own opinion is that its a load of codswallop.
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  pennycandy

  Actually, I think the biggest factor in birthweight it that smoking constricts blood vessles, which is where baby gets his oxygen/nurishment. I've read that after only two cigarrettes babies in utero show signs of oxygen deprivation and make very agitated movements.

  Although I would never encourage a mom-to-be to drink, even moderately, smoking throughout pregnancy seems to be much more detrimental.
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  under_believer

  Smoking while pregnant is evil. The fact that it works out for some people does not change the inherent evil of doing it.
• 

  Scully

  If I had to pick the one thing that bugs me more than anything else, seeing a pregnant woman smoking would be it.

  Yes, pregnant women who smoke have babies who are born with a nicotine addiction. They go through withdrawal - they tend to be very irritable, cry inconsolably, feed poorly, and studies show they tend to be more sickly - with higher incidence of ear infections, colds and allergies. A recently published study also followed kids from birth to age 14: the ones whose mothers smoked during pregnancy tended to have children with higher BMI than those who never smoked or who quit smoking during the pregnancy.

  Nicotine also gets into the mother's milk - so babies get nicotine via their intestinal tract and end up being colicky.

  I don't know why anyone would want to put a newborn through that kind of agony, but I see it almost all the time in my line of work. And the mothers think they're putting one over on us when they get up at 5am and want to put the baby in the nursery so they can "go out for some fresh air". "Fresh air" my arse.
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  parakeet

  My mother smoked while pregnant with me and also for the first 9 years of my life. I was born underweight and had to be placed in an incubator for several weeks before I could be taken home. I've been plagued all my life with pulmonary complaints. I recently visited a new pulmonary specialist; when I told him about my mom's smoking history, he just shook his head and said that's why I've had so many problems with my lungs. I've never told my mom; she's already guilt-ridden enough about it.
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  sunshineToo

  When the mother smokes, it cuts off baby's oxigen. How would you feel if you can't breathe? Why torture that tiny little innocent baby?
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  bubble

  I heard that every time a pregnant mother takes a drag on a cigarette, it's like she is putting her hands around her unborn baby's throat and squeezing it.
  Therefore, if you smoke whilst pregnant you clearly do not love your unborn child. Simple as that!
  It takes all my energy not to walk up to pregnant women who are smoking and snatch the cigarette out of their mouths and give them a lecture. Fortunately I don't see it that often.