Women who smoke have always been told to quit during their pregnancy. However, experts weren’t really sure how much of a difference quitting after conception would really make. Now, experts have research that confirms that women who stop smoking when pregnancy is confirmed can dramatically improve the health of their baby.
This information was confirmed by a study conducted by Professor Nick Macklon, a consultant and gynecologist and the medical director of the Complete Fertility Centre at the Princess Anne Hospital. It was one of the largest studies of its kind – a study of the overall outcome of 50,000 different pregnancies.
According to the data, women who gave up smoking around the time of conception and women who gave up smoking after pregnancy was confirmed had babies that were of comparable birth weights. Based on this information, the short time of smoking before pregnancy was confirmed did not have adverse effects on the birth weight of the baby. Premature birth was also less likely than if the mother had continued to smoke throughout the pregnancy.
Of course, there are still many women that are somehow misled into thinking that smoking to achieve a smaller baby is okay. They fear the birth of a large infant and continue to smoke, making the claim that they want a lower birth weight baby. What this theory fails to realize is the potential health problems that come with a lower birth weight baby.
Lower birth weight infants tend to have more health complications all the way around. Complications during delivery can also occur when mothers continue to smoke. Professor Macklon warns that mothers should avoid listening to this dangerous advice and steer completely away from this unhealthy trend.
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