Nicotine addiction is a tough habit to quit. I bet a lot of you are wondering what you should do to quit now that you are pregnant. The truth is, quitting while pregnant is extremely important but keep in mind that quitting smoking can be even tougher on unborn babies. Today, recommendations for heavy smokers are much more flexible–sudden “cold turkey” smoking cessation is not the best approach.
Risks Associated with Tobacco Use during Pregnancy
Public education campaigns have made a very clear point when it comes to smoking during pregnancy and how it poses severe risk to the health of the fetus. Pregnancy complications thought to be caused by smoking include unprompted abortion or miscarriage, malplacement of the placenta and babies that are small and have low birth weights. This list also includes limb reduction deformities (missing fingers and toes), hemorrhage, maternal perineal and vaginal lacerations, prematurity, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), and childhood asthma. Babies exposed to nicotine in the womb are also more likely to smoke as adults.
Do Not Quit Cold Turkey
I know they say “just quit,” but it’s not that easy and unfortunately you can cause great harm to yourself and to your baby if you quit cold turkey. This works for some people, but a heavy smoker (someone who smokes more than 20 cigarettes a day) should wean off of tobacco gradually. Sudden cessation can lead to seizures in heavy smokers, injuries from falling and oxygen deprivation, not to mention the unpredictability of where or when a seizure might occur. Consider alternative solutions such as Laser Therapy to help you quit smoking.
In addition to seizures, if you stopping smoking abruptly during the first trimester of pregnancy you risk facing increased spontaneous abortion or miscarriage. The physical and emotional stress of withdrawal from smoking is thought to release chemicals in the mother’s bloodstream that cross the placenta and cause fetal distress. Likely also are uterine contractions. It is not known if abrupt smoking cessation in the last trimester could result in premature birth, but this is a possibility.
Cutting Down and Seeking Help
Instead of the “Cold Turkey” approach, consider smoking five cigarettes a day. This is a level of minimal risk in pregnancy. Some mothers use a different strategy to avoid harmful contaminants and chemicals in cigarettes; they only smoke the tips and discard the cigarette very soon after lighting up. This requires many more cigarettes, but the expense is worth it.
Seeking help from family & friends, Twitter followers, Facebook friends, and support groups is a great idea. You’d be surprised how many people out there want to invest their time to help you succeed. The internet has made it super easy to find the information you need, as well as find or create a safe community of supporters.
