Society considers a mother who smokes while pregnant to be repulsive.
But I have sympathy for these mothers because there is a lot more than meets the eye when it comes to smoking.
Find out more in this article.
We all know that cigarettes are harmful to our health.
This is no longer the days of the 50s and 60s when society was ignorant of the dangers.
And yet, despite smoking bans, there are still some innocents affected by smoking against their wishes including unborn children.
Yet is this treatment of smoking mothers fair? The Damage That Can Be Done The most well known fact about how smoking affects the unborn child is in the eventual birth weight.
We all know that birth weight is a good barometer of a person's future health and smoking during pregnancy is often associated with low birth weight.
What you may also not have heard is that smoking can make miscarriage more likely, by as much as 50%.
Addiction Let's not forget that cigarette smoking is an addiction.
Very few people are able to quit using willpower alone, for more than a few days.
Expecting anyone to quit for 9 months using willpower methods is almost ridiculous.
A lot of people will counter that if a woman is expecting a child then she "should" have more willpower and "should" stop smoking.
The people who say this are ill-informed and do not understand addiction.
They do not understand how the chips are stacked against you if you are an addict.
So, what can a mother do if she is expecting and wants to try and stop? The Man Should Stop Smoking First of all, the man should stop smoking.
There is simply no excuse for the partner to not attempt to quit smoking.
This will lend great moral support to the mother.
It will also mean that the household is smoke free and less temptations will be in the household, such as a pack of cigarettes lying around.
Alternatives To Willpower Based Methods Most people quit using willpower based methods.
If you are a mother-to-be and a smoker, then I seriously suggest to you that you research all forms of smoking cessation.
There are many different methods out there such as hypnosis and others which may give you a much higher chance than willpower alone.
There are even some methods that are based on cognitive behavioural therapy that do not rely on willpower alone.
I understand how difficult it can be to break addiction but at the very least, explore all the methods available to you.
You owe your child that much and anything less would be irresponsible.
But I have sympathy for these mothers because there is a lot more than meets the eye when it comes to smoking.
Find out more in this article.
We all know that cigarettes are harmful to our health.
This is no longer the days of the 50s and 60s when society was ignorant of the dangers.
And yet, despite smoking bans, there are still some innocents affected by smoking against their wishes including unborn children.
Yet is this treatment of smoking mothers fair? The Damage That Can Be Done The most well known fact about how smoking affects the unborn child is in the eventual birth weight.
We all know that birth weight is a good barometer of a person's future health and smoking during pregnancy is often associated with low birth weight.
What you may also not have heard is that smoking can make miscarriage more likely, by as much as 50%.
Addiction Let's not forget that cigarette smoking is an addiction.
Very few people are able to quit using willpower alone, for more than a few days.
Expecting anyone to quit for 9 months using willpower methods is almost ridiculous.
A lot of people will counter that if a woman is expecting a child then she "should" have more willpower and "should" stop smoking.
The people who say this are ill-informed and do not understand addiction.
They do not understand how the chips are stacked against you if you are an addict.
So, what can a mother do if she is expecting and wants to try and stop? The Man Should Stop Smoking First of all, the man should stop smoking.
There is simply no excuse for the partner to not attempt to quit smoking.
This will lend great moral support to the mother.
It will also mean that the household is smoke free and less temptations will be in the household, such as a pack of cigarettes lying around.
Alternatives To Willpower Based Methods Most people quit using willpower based methods.
If you are a mother-to-be and a smoker, then I seriously suggest to you that you research all forms of smoking cessation.
There are many different methods out there such as hypnosis and others which may give you a much higher chance than willpower alone.
There are even some methods that are based on cognitive behavioural therapy that do not rely on willpower alone.
I understand how difficult it can be to break addiction but at the very least, explore all the methods available to you.
You owe your child that much and anything less would be irresponsible.
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