Babies and Tobacco

Will it surprise you to know that babies smoke? If you are pregnant and you smoke, so does the baby you carry.

One study of reproductive health says that smoking and secondhand smoke is a major cause of sudden death syndrome, low birth weight, premature births, miscarriages, and health and developmental problems of children born to smokers. Nicotine use is also a major cause of stillborn children.

Another reputable medical study reports that cigarette smoking not only passes nicotine on to the fetus; it also keeps as high as 25 percent of the oxygen from reaching the placenta.

Here’s a couple of fascinating if deadly statistics for wannabe “Numbers” whiz kids: Smoking during pregnancy accounts for up to 14 percent of preterm deliveries – and about 10 percent of all infant deaths.

Moms who smoke and breastfeed pass the nicotine on to their babies through breast milk. And if your day care center has smokers, your child can develop bronchitis and other respiratory diseases as a result of secondhand smoke.

Here is the killer statistic. In spite of all these dangers, more than one in ten pregnant women smokes.

A Personal Story Mommy and the smoking gun

Heidi, a sweet and pretty new mom, had a first baby with some medical problems that required expensive specialized medical care. However, that did not stop either Heidi or her family from smoking near their children - or their fetuses when pregnant. They strongly embrace the concept that they are free souls who can do as they wish any time, any place, under any circumstance. And they do, including smoking cigarettes and cigars – even as their children run to and fro near and around them. Heidi, her husband Tim and her other family members are wonderful loving parents. They just gamble with the wrong chips.

Then, Heidi got pregnant again. This time, it was suggested that it might be best if she curtailed her smoking while pregnant.

Heidi shrugged her shoulders and lit another cigarette. Then the baby was born. The little girl weighed six pounds; she was born with jaundice and had difficulty digesting her food properly.

Will the child have other or more serious health abnormalities as she gets older? Only time will tell. Oh, did I mention that the mom is a registered nurse? What is wrong with this picture?

Ladies, gamble with your money, gamble with your hair color, gamble with your new prom dress, but please don’t gamble with a baby’s future health.